


The Two Cockroaches

by Mutatedbunnies



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Dreamtale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Errortale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Inktale (Undertale), DecayTale, Fluff, Freshtale - Freeform, Haphephobia, M/M, Repeartale, Swaptale - Freeform, XTale, aftertale
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-26
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2019-10-17 07:14:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 39
Words: 149,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17555792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mutatedbunnies/pseuds/Mutatedbunnies
Summary: In the aftermath of a messy breakup, Ink moves into the city to begin his life anew. After a fateful encounter with his neighbor, he falls head over heels for someone new. Error, a graduate student who’s hesitant when it comes to romance, is immediately swept up in Ink’s brilliance and vitality, unable to stop himself. While Ink and Error are consumed with one another, their friends and family fall into romantic affairs of their own. Cross, Error’s best friend, falls in love at first sight with Ink’s ex-boyfriend, who isn’t sure he’s ready for a new beau just yet. Geno, a promising young doctor, has an unfortunate tendency to be stalked by one of the hospital’s top forensic pathologists, Reaper.





	1. The Roaches

“You’re sure about this?” Dream asked as he stared up at the rundown, three story apartment building that was situated on the corner of a busy street. A busy street corner located in a bad part of town.

“Absolutely.” Ink stated, throwing a box into his friend’s arms.

“There’s no way I can talk you out of it?”

“Absolutely not.”

Dream sighed, his frown deepening to the point it might become a permanent fixture on his visage.

He and Ink had… broken up. They had lived together and when things didn’t work out, Ink wanted to move out on his own. Not even in with another roommate. Alone. Completely isolated from the rest of the world in this little studio apartment on the third floor of a building that probably had bed bugs. And in the middle of the large city, no less.

They had split amicably and were still friends, but Dream was uneasy about Ink living on his own. He had the attention span of a goldfish and his memory was so bad that if he had an actual goldfish, he would forget to feed it. And probably forget that he had even bought it in the first place. Ink might even just wander into the street and get hit by a bus because he was too consumed in sketching. He had to worry if Ink would forget to feed himself.

Thankfully, Ink didn’t own much so they only had to go up the three flights of stair four times. It probably would have been easier if their friend Blue could have made it. After their fourth and final trip up, they collapsed on the floor, their faces flushed from the effort.

“We did it!” Ink thrust his fist in the air triumphantly. “I’m going to order pizza.”

Dream sighed. At least there was going to be pizza after this.

They had seen a few of Ink’s neighbors in their scramble up the stairs. It was a motley crew of monsters and humans. Some young with families, some old enough to have outlived all of their relatives.

“You need furniture.” Dream huffed as he sat up.

“I’m getting a bed delivered tomorrow.” Ink shrugged, his back against the wall.

“So, you’re gonna sleep on the floor tonight?”

Another shrug.

Dream sighed.

“You can always come back with me. There’s no reason for you to sleep here if you don’t even have a bed.”

“I’ve already made up my mind. I’m staying here from now on.” Ink grinned at him. “And if the floor gets too hard, I’ll just fuck one of my neighbors and sleep in their bed.”

Dream choked.

“Wow, I was only joking! Lighten up, Dream.” Ink laughed at his friend’s discomfort. Though, he wouldn’t have minded getting some. It’d been a while, even though their break up was pretty recent.

There was a knock on the door.

“Pizza!” Ink shot up with excitement and bounded over to the door. His stomach was starting to ache and only the sweet relief of cheese and grease could ease his pain. He flung the door open.

The human seemed a bit uneasy with Ink’s enthusiasm and watched his irises change rapidly.

“H-here’s your pizza…” They said awkwardly, stretching the box out to the skeleton.

At that moment, Ink heard a jangle of keys to the right and turned his head to catch his first glimpse of his next door neighbor. He was tall, to Ink’s standards, wearing a sweater and loose-fitting jeans, paired with decrepit tennis shoes and a backpack slung over one shoulder. While that was all very interesting, the thing that stood out the most was that he was a black-boned skeleton. He was unlike anything Ink had even seen in his short existence and he wanted to get closer.

“U-um…” The pizza delivery human bounced from foot to foot, unsure of themselves.

At the sound of the human’s voice, his neighbor turned, and Ink caught sight of blue streaks running from his eyes to his jaws. And his eyes. They were fascinating. He frowned at Ink, catching him in his stare before pushing the door open and stepping inside, away from the artist’s pointed stare.

Ink finally snapped back to reality.

He leaned back into his own doorway, that he hadn’t realized he was hanging out of. He looked back at the human.

“Sorry… Here’s an extra tip.” He laughed awkwardly, taking the pizza. He squinted at the human’s nametag. “Thanks, Frisk.”

The human smiled and moved back, turning towards the stairs. Ink closed the door.

“What the hell was that about?” Dream looked up at him, puzzled.

Ink plopped down on the floor, setting the pizza box between the two of them. He flipped it open, taking a piece of the sweet, artery-clogging pie.

“It was my neighbor. I saw him.” Suddenly his eye lights sprang into stars. “He was the most interesting-looking monster I’ve ever seen! His bones are black! He has lines on his cheeks. And his EYES, Dream! They’re so colorful! Well, technically they’re only red and yellow and I think I saw some blue? You should have seen him…”

Dream drowned out the rest of Ink’s description of his neighbor. Maybe he really should be worried about Ink spending the night in a neighbor’s bed.

After they had finished the pizza and Ink had finally stopped rambling about his “interesting” neighbor, Dream stood to leave.

“As much as I hate leaving you here to sleep on the floor, I do have to go. I promised Night I’d pick him up from… whatever he’s doing.” Dream shrugged. He couldn’t remember what his brother was up to. It was one of the many things that had irked Ink, though perhaps that was a little hypocritical.

Ink stood, stretching and cracking a few joints while he was at it. Dream grimaced. That was one of the things that had irked Dream. He couldn’t stand the sound of joints popping.

“Alright Dreamy. I’ll see you…” Ink’s brow furrowed. When would he see Dream again? With his new job starting in a few days and Dream being a university student who lived in the suburbs, he wasn’t sure.

“Soon.” Dream finished for him with a smile. “We’ll see each other soon.” He gave a small wave and opened the door.

“Remember to lock your door. I don’t want to hear about how you were murdered in your sleep.”

“Aye aye, captain!” Ink saluted his friend as he closed the door behind himself. He went to the door and turned all the locks into place, just for Dream. He yawned and went to slump against one of the walls, pulling a blanket over himself and taking his laptop out.

He had lied to Dream. He didn’t have a bed coming tomorrow. He opened his web browser and began to hastily search for a bed that he could have delivered to him within a few days. If he knew Dream, and he knew him well, Dream would randomly stop by sometime in the next few days to check on him. And he didn’t want Dream to find him without a bed. That he said he already had.

He found a simple set and a mattress to match and sent the order off. He even paid a little extra so that they would assemble it for him when they delivered it. He felt accomplished, and exhausted. He still needed to unpack his few boxes, but that could wait. His job at the art gallery didn’t start until Wednesday, so he had plenty of time to get settled. And maybe he would be able to strike up a conversation with his neighbor…

_“Just fucking die already!”_

The little artist-in-training blinked. It was a yell that had been muffled by the wall… He glanced around, trying to figure out where it was coming from.

_“You’re an abomination. A waste of space on this planet. You don’t deserve to live. You deserve to burn in hell!”_

He heard a crash and a thump as something fell to the ground. But now he knew where it was coming from. It was coming from the wall to his right, the room that held his intriguing neighbor. His heart raced. Was he having some kind of fight with someone? It sounded almost like some kind of… domestic fight. Was someone hurt?

He stood and went to his bare wall, pressing the side of his skull to it, trying to hear better.

_“You come in here, in my home, and try to pull this shit? You’re pathetic. You’re nothing. When I find you, I’m going to desiccate your body so badly that your own MOTHER won’t be able to identify your corpse.”_

Ink jolted back. Someone was really in trouble! And like the idiot he was, he dashed out his front door with no way to defend himself, no cell phone, and not even his keys. He began banging on his neighbor’s door frantically.

“Hello?! Is anyone in there?! I heard yelling! I-I’m going to call the police!” He shouted.

The door flew open, and there was his new neighbor, panting softly with a sheen of sweat on his forehead. In one hand he gripped one of his ratty old Converses.

“What do you want?” He practically growled. Ink swallowed, pulling his courage from the pits of his non-existent guts.

“I won’t let you hurt them!” Ink shouted. His neighbor grimaced at the sound.

“Quiet down! And hurt who?” He wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand.

“Whoever you’re yelling at! They’re not a waste of space! They’re valued and cherished and I won’t let you kill them!” Ink was still frantic.

His neighbor paused, then blinked at him.

Then he laughed.

“Oh shit, you heard that? That’s embarrassing.” The monster chuckled for a few more seconds. Then he looked back to Ink, was still prepared for a fight.

“Oh, you really want to rescue them? Be my guest.” The man moved out from the doorframe, allowing Ink to come inside. The room had the same layout as his, only a lot tidier than his place could ever hope to be, and furnished with a small bed, a couch, a TV and what looked like a video game set, a desk and chair, and some bookshelves.

Other than that, the place was empty.

“But where…?” Ink frowned, doubting himself.

The man pointed to a corner.

“Right over. There’s the sacks of shit that you need to get out of here.”

Ink quickly moved to the corner where a few books had landed, probably from when they were knocked over just a moment ago. Nestled just next to the books were a pair of long, thick, cockroaches.

He shrieked and jumped back.

His neighbor howled in laughter.

“Not so brave now, huh, hero?” He cawed.

“U-um… I-I wasn’t expecting that…” Ink rubbed the back of his skull.

His neighbor pushed his shoe into Ink’s hand.

“There ya go, knight in shining armor. If you’d rather scoop them up with your bare hands and take them allllll the way down the stairs and allll the way to the garden to release them, be my guest.” He laughed again before sitting down on his sofa.

Ink frowned at the shoe in his hand. He was NOT going to be picking the roaches up anytime soon. He gripped his weapon and started moving back towards the corner. Now that he knew his neighbor was abusing anyone or a murderer, he could impress him with his roach killing skills.

He advanced on the roaches, raising the shoe. Then he paused.

“Having second thought, Sir Lancelot?” He heard behind him.

“Shut up. I’m trying to concentrate.” Ink shushed.

He swiftly brought down the shoe, striking one of the creatures. It simply bounced on the carpet and began trying to squirm away. The sudden movement stirred it’s partner out of its malaise and it too began a scramble. Ink cried out and bounced away. This only caused his audience to laugh harder.

“Now do you know I was talking to them like that?” He grinned at Ink. It was a nice smile, filled with yellow teeth. Yellow teeth that Ink assumed wasn’t because of a lack of proper oral hygiene.

“Are they mutants?” Ink scowled. The force behind his blow should have at least broke through its exoskeleton a little bit. Or broken a leg. SOMETHING.

“I don’t know. I’m pretty sure the lady next to me has a collection of ‘em. They’re probably African or some shit. Built to survive.” He hopped off the couch, setting his drink aside. Ink glanced at it. A cheap light beer. Fits the demographic of people who would live in a place like this.

His neighbor went to his small kitchenette and opened one of the drawers.

“What are you doing?” Ink asked, trying to sneak a peek. The front door was still open, so if he did turn out to be a murderer, Ink could get out pretty quickly.

“If you’re going to slay a dragon, you gotta get the right tools.” The man dug around in his silverware before pulling something out. Ink was intrigued. What did he plan to do with a fork?

“Oh by the way I’m-“ Ink began to introduce himself.

“Yeah, one second.” His neighbor brushed passed him. Ink fell silent, curiosity overtaking him. “They haven’t moved much…” He sounded like he was deep in thought.

He kneeled down and… thrust the fork down into the carpet. Ink twitched as he heard a crunch. And then… another thrust, and another crunch.

“Got ‘em.” The man said happily, standing back up. He held the fork out to Ink. Skewered on the tongs were the two roaches, both of them moving their legs wildly. As Ink watched in horror, disgust, and slight amazement, their legs slowed down as the life slowly left their bodies.

The victor laughed again and moved out the front door to where the garbage chute was. He threw it down the chute and pulled the cover closed with a loud clang. Ink watched. This man was so different from anyone he knew.

“Want a beer?” The dark skeleton asked as he bounded back into his apartment. “You’re new, right?”

“No thanks, I don’t really drink… And yeah! I just moved in today! My name’s Ink.” He thrust out his hand, excited to finally be introduced to his neighbor. Even though their meeting was a bit off color, he was still grateful for the chance.

The man looked at his hand, seeming to hesitate for a moment before reaching out and shaking it.

“I’m Error.” He pulled his hand back. Ink was left with an empty coldness. He wanted to touch his hand again. “And it’s probably good you don’t drink. You look like a sloppy drunk.”

Ink frowned, though he was still amused.

“Why do I look like a sloppy drunk?” He crossed his arms.

“Hm.” Error tilted his head at him, studying him. For some reason Ink had the urge to do a twirl. “I can pinpoint why. But you look like the kind of guy that’d get drunk and start confessing your love to anyone who looked at you the right way.”

Ink thought for a moment. Then shrugged.

“Maybe I would. What do you do?” He asked.

“What do I do when I’m drunk? Get in fights, mostly.” Error paused. “Do you want to stay and chat? You could close the door and sit down if you are.”

Ink blinked, realizing this was quite an uncomfortable position they were standing in and that he spied a door across the hallway that was open a tiny bit. He quickly shut the door and moved to the couch. It was nice to use some furniture.

“I meant what you do for work, but that’s good to know.” Ink huffed. None of his friends really drank and did anything… “bad.” Error seemed like the kind of guy who had wild high school and college years.

Error sat next to him, laughing slightly. Ink didn’t realize how small the couch was until their knees brushed against each other. He forced down a blush.

“Oh. That makes more sense. Um, I’m a grad student. I’m studying cyber security.” He took another drink of his beer. “What do you do?”

“Cyber security? That’s interesting. Do you catch bad guys on the internet?” Ink asked, ignoring the question aimed at him. He wanted to know more about Error.

“I guess? There’s a lot of shitty things going on online, Ink. So, where do you work?” Error prompted again.

“Oh! Um, I’m about to start working at the Dreemurr art gallery. But outside of work, I’m an artist.” He gloated, a bit haughtily. Surely, artists were Error’s type. He was a grad student, after all.

“Oh, my ex works there.” Error said nonchalantly. “What kind of art do you do?”

Ink nodded to himself. He was right, artists were his type if his ex worked at an art gallery. Then he stumbled over himself. He was going to be working with his neighbor’s ex?! Especially a neighbor that he wanted to see more of? He wasn’t sure if that was a very good, or very bad thing. On the one hand, he could see what Error liked and maybe even get know some of his neuroses before getting in too deep. On the other hand… it was his ex. His EX.  

“Ink?”

He snapped back to reality.

“Ahah, sorry. It looks like I spaced out a bit there. I’m really tired from moving, and slaying dragons. I should probably go home.” He laughed slightly and reached down, accidentally grabbing onto Error’s thigh and using it to push himself up. Embarrassment number two of the night. 

Error stilled at the touch but got up after a moment, following Ink to the door.

“Have a good night.” Error said, opening the door for him. “I’ll see you around.” He gave Ink a weak smile. The artist blinked and studied that smile. It would help him tonight, since inspiration had struck so suddenly.

“You too. It was nice hanging!” Ink said quickly before rushing to his own door. He closed the door quickly and thankfully remembered to lock it.

He started rushing through his boxes, opening each of them and tossing their contents onto the floor as he searched for it. His sketch book. After he had emptied the last box, he realized he had put it away in his messenger bag so that he wouldn’t have to dig for it. He laughed at himself and pulled it out, eager to get started on the sketch of Error he wanted to try and draw from memory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This started from a prompt with something about cockroaches that I can't really remember. I've been wanting to do a broad AU story with many of the different AU characters coming together, so expect a lot! And of course, lots of Errink :)


	2. Red Dead Romance?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Error and Ink play a video game together. Ink gets a reward for winning.

Error spent the rest of the evening ticking away at his laptop, trying to finish some work for his classes the following day. He tried to get some research for his job done as well, but his mind kept drifting elsewhere. He thought of his strange new neighbor, who had jumped up so suddenly and ran out the door. He didn’t think that it had been anything he had said, but Error wasn’t exactly the best at social interactions. And even though Error had made fun of him, Ink had seemed to be fine with it. He couldn’t really place where their interaction had gone south. He shouldn’t have been worrying about it; he had just met the guy. Maybe Ink was socially awkward as well.

He knew of a monster who was good with people, in a weird way. His brother. He opened a new tab in his internet browser and went to UnderNet. He pulled up his profile and grimaced. The newest photo was of his brother, doing a trick on his skateboard while giving the camera a peace sign. It was captioned: “Getting high on life, my dudes!” Error groaned and sat back in his chair. There was no way he was asking Fresh for help. But the guy was a professional social media influencer. He knew how to read people and cater to what they liked.

No, Error wasn’t contacting Fresh. He wanted to put as much space between him and both of his brothers as possible. He thought moving away to a big city would do the trick. It didn’t. His brothers had come after him, though they said it was for other reasons. At least Geno’s was more plausible than Fresh’s.

Error was rubbing his brow ridge when he heard a popular song playing from… in between the seat cushions of the couch. His own phone was on his desk, right next to his mouse where he liked it. He stood and crossed to the little couch, sticking his hand down into the abyss and came out with a phone he didn’t recognize. He pressed the button and the screen lit up and showed a picture of Ink and some other skeleton hugging. So it was Ink’s phone. He pressed the button again and was immediately granted access.

“Not even password protected…” He grumbled. If he and Ink were dating, he’d make sure Ink had a password.

He froze.

If he and…Ink? He shook his head. It was too quick for that kind of thought, wasn’t it? He wanted to see more of Ink, but skipping straight ahead to the relationship?

_Slow down there, Error buddy._ He scolded himself.

He looked back to the phone, frowning. Didn’t relationships start with flirting? Then a date or two? How did someone flirt?

He suddenly had an idea.

He went to Ink’s contacts and added his own number, but under the name ‘Cockroach.’ That was cute, wasn’t it? Error nodded to himself, satisfied with his work. Now he needed to get the phone back to its owner. And maybe scold him a little bit for not having a password.

He left his apartment and walked a little way down the hall before arriving at his door. He knocked softly, since it was late, and he didn’t want to wake his other neighbors. He waited. And waited. He didn’t hear any sound from the artist’s apartment, and it looked dark. He frowned and went back to his own place. He scribbled on a sticky note before placing it on the phone’s screen and sliding the device under his neighbor’s door. That would have to do.

As he closed the door to his own apartment, he let out a yawn. Error guessed it was probably time for him to go to bed. After changing and brushing his teeth, he crawled into bed. He was closing his eyes when a thought struck him. What if Ink wasn’t single? He had that picture… What if that was his boyfriend and not a friend? Error felt panic rising in his chest. What if he was being a homewrecker? He could feel himself starting to short circuit. He took a few deep breaths, trying to steady himself. He started stretching; first his toes, then he moved up his body, relaxing his muscles.

When he had calmed down, he thought about the situation logically. Worst case scenario: Ink never spoke to him again. Best case scenario: Ink thought it was silly, but definitely NOT flirting, and would still be amicable towards him. In any case, what was done was done. Error couldn’t take it back.

He rolled over on his side, curling up into a ball. He finally fell asleep, pushing romantic inklings into the back of his mind.

 

* * *

 

Ink woke up the following morning in a pile on the floor, his cheek pressing into his sketch book. He slowly sat up, rubbing at said cheek and smearing charcoal onto the back of his hand. It wasn’t unlike him to have some kind of media on his face. He sighed and reached for his phone. His fingers wiggled around on the carpet, not hitting anything. Panic rose in him. Where was his phone? He patted his pockets, since he hadn’t changed the night before, but nothing showed up. He did find a pencil that was really just a nub in his back pocket, but nothing else.

He shot up, beginning to dig through the things he had unceremoniously pulled from his boxes the day before in his mad scramble to find his sketch book. Dream was going to kill him for losing his phone! He stopped. He shouldn’t be worrying what Dream would think about this. They weren’t together anymore. He stared at the floor, frowning. He had made this move to get space from is ex-boyfriend. They were friends, but Dream didn’t have the same hold on him as he used to. It wasn’t his place to reprimand Ink.

Suddenly, he had a rare moment of clarity. His phone might be at Error’s! That would make sense. But he thought he had rushed out his door without it. But he remembered putting it in his pocket after ordering pizza. But what if he had taken it out again? His memory was so spotty, it couldn’t be trusted. It was worth asking his neighbor anyway.

He was just about to step out the door when he happened to glance on the floor and… There it was! His phone! He grinned and picked it up. There was a note stuck to the screen.

_“You left this. And put a password on it. -E”_

Ink appreciated the sentiment, but he wouldn’t be able to remember the password to save his life. He peeled the note off and stuck it to the wall next to the door before wandering back to his small nest on the floor. As soon as he lit up the screen, his heart dropped. His background was still of him and Dream. He knew Error had seen it. He had to turn on the phone to see it wasn’t password protected. What if… what if he thought he was in a relationship? His soul screamed in agony. Dream was coming to haunt him again.

He pushed the unpleasant feeling away and opened his phone. There was a new message from Dream, asking how his first night was, but he decided to ignore it. He was now mad at Dream, for something he didn’t do, nonetheless. He blinked as his phone opened to his contacts. Why was Error in there? He scrolled a bit until he reached an entry named “Cockroach.” He blinked and frowned. That hadn’t been there before, had it? He lost himself in thought, trying to figure it out. Then it dawned on him.

Cockroach.

Cockroaches.

Cockroaches that were murdered with a fork.

He smiled. Maybe Error hadn’t thought the worst of the picture. Adding himself was cute but giving himself a nickname that was somewhat of an inside joke was even cuter. Ink hoped Error was flirting with him. He wasn’t sure he was ready for a new relationship just yet, but it was exciting to find someone new that interested him. He hadn’t felt that spark, the thrill of the chase, in a long time. It energized him.

Ink knew he needed to go and thank his neighbor for returning his phone, but he decided to wait. Would he look too eager if he ran there now? And it was midmorning on a Monday. There was a good chance Error wasn’t even home.

And so, he waited.

 

* * *

 

Error got home later than he would have liked. It had been a busy day. He had his regular classes, and then he had to put in his hours at the research center. To end the day, Cross made him go to anime club, and even though Error bailed five minutes in, it still made him miss his usual train, so he had to wait for the next one to show up. He dropped his backpack on the floor unceremoniously and turned on his gaming console to blow off some steam. He luckily had nothing due tomorrow, so he got to rest for the night.

He was in the middle of his game when he heard a knock on the door. He ignored it at first, thinking it was probably the crazy lady next door who wanted to ask if he had seen her cockroaches. But the knocking persisted, so he paused his game and went to the door.

“What?” He asked as he opened. He paused when he saw who it was.

“Um, it’s me. I just wanted to thank you for bringing my phone back.” Ink smiled shyly. In each of his hands was a mug of what Error assumed was hot chocolate, piled with marshmallows. He blinked.

“Uh, no worries.” He scratched the back of his neck as Ink continued to stare at him, one eye a star and the other a blue oval. They watched each other for a moment as Ink blinked, his pupils changing.

“I brought hot chocolate as a thank you. Can I come in?” Ink asked.

“Sure.” Error felt awkward as he moved away from the door so that his neighbor could come in.

Ink trotted in happily and set the mugs down on Error’s coffee table. Error felt like he had been worrying for nothing. The other seemed fine and unfazed by their parting the night before and had even brought hot chocolate, which Error couldn’t refuse. He closed the door and went over to the couch, where Ink was already making himself at home. He sat down next to him and picked up the mug, taking a sip. It tasted exactly as he expected it to: a powdered version, but with milk. He slid his eyes over to Ink, who was looking at him expectantly, his pupils changing rapidly.

“Er… It’s good.” Error complimented. He saw the artist’s expression brighten immediately.

“Really? I’m glad!” Ink looked cheerful at his success. It was cute, and Error decided then that if Ink ever made him anything else, he would say it was nice just to see that face again.

Ink looked over to his TV and laughed.

“You play video games? How old are you? Twelve?” He laughed. Error frowned.

“Twelve and a half. And what’s wrong with video games? I get to kill people without actually killing people.” Error crossed his arms.

“They’re for kids. And what kind of game is this? Some kind of cowboy simulator? Do you say yeehaw and howdy?”

Even though he was frowning, Error liked Ink’s banter. He picked up the controller and thrust it into Ink’s hands.

“Play it. You’ll see.” Error winked at him, earning a slight blush on Ink’s cheeks. “If you don’t like it, you win. If you do, I win.”

“What do I get if I win?” Ink huffed.

“A fun time.”

“Don’t want it. How about… if I win…” Ink furrowed his brow bone as he thought. “You model for a painting for me.”

Error blinked, then smirked.

“Okay. And if I win, you get me more chocolate.”

“You’re on!”

Error had to teach Ink some of the controls, but once he was done, he let him off into the vast digital world of the game. He sat back, drinking from his mug as he watched. Ink was hilariously bad at it, and he was cursing the entire time.

“You should watch out here. There are bears.” Error warned.

“Bears? Why do I need to watch out for bears?” Ink grumbled.

Two seconds later a bear emerged from a group of trees and proceeded to attack and eat Ink’s horse.

“It’s eating my horse!” He cried, jolting back against the couch.

“I told you to watch out!” Error laughed.

“Oh no! It’s coming for me!” Ink began to frantically press buttons in no particular order.

“Shoot it!”

“How?!” He wailed just as the bear began to maul him. A few seconds later, the ‘You have died’ text scrolled across the screen.

“Still think it’s for kids?” Error smirked. Ink frowned.

“I guess not…” He grumbled, setting the controller down. “I still didn’t enjoy it, though. But you made your point. You win.” He huffed.

“The deal was made that you would enjoy it. So, you win.” Error sighed. He couldn’t stand that look on Ink’s face. And he felt stupid for it. Ink immediately perked up.

“Oh, in that case, great! That means you have to model for me!”

“I guess so.” Error shrugged and picked up their now empty mugs and taking them to the sink.

Ink began stretching, popping his back and then his neck. He let out a sigh.

“I’m so sore…” He complained under his breath.

“From moving?” Error asked, washing the mugs. He didn’t want to let them sit too long and become crusty.

“No… From sleeping on the floor. I don’t have a bed yet, which is kind of annoying.” He sighed.  

“You don’t have a bed?”

Ink looked at him sheepishly.

“No… I… It’s coming tomorrow.” He laughed awkwardly. Error was probably going to scold him like Dream would. Or any logical thinking person.

“…I guess that makes sense. You just moved in.” Error set the mugs aside on the counter to dry.

Ink blinked.

“You’re not going to make fun of me?” He asked.

“No?” Error quirked a brow. “When I first moved in, I only had a mattress that I slept on. It’s kind of a rite of passage when moving. And I only ate takeout when I first moved because I didn’t know where the grocery store was.”

Ink laughed. At least someone else didn’t have it together. It made him feel a bit better about forgetting things.

“Since you don’t have a bed…” Error paused, hesitating. “Do you want to sleep over here? You can take my bed and I’ll sleep on the couch.”

Ink’s eyes changed into stars. Error almost took a step back. They seemed so bright.

“Really?! That would be great!” Ink almost cheered. “But I couldn’t take your bed. I’m smaller anyway, so I’ll fit on the couch better.”

Error smiled slightly.

“Alright.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I need to add a little note about this world, since I don't know how to casually include it in the actual story. Basically, no one has a tragic backstory. Maybe some unpleasant things happened, but nothing too sad. For example, Ink never had to rip his soul out, Error doesn't hear voices, Fresh isn't a parasite, and Geno isn't deformed. I just really want them to be able to be happy. T^T


	3. The Legend of Mettaton

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross starts to get nosy about Error's new neighbor.

After Ink had ran back to his apartment and grabbed a pillow and a blanket, he sat on the couch by himself and continued to try out Error’s video games. The other was busy at his desk, typing away on his computer. Ink was a bit put out that Error had to actually do work. He wanted attention! …But he knew Error was doing important things, so he left him alone. Mostly.

“How do I get around this puzzle?”

“If I told you, it would ruin the fun.”

“Can’t you give me a hint?”

A sigh.

“Look on the left wall just under the statue.”

“Which statue?”

“I think I know why you don’t play video games.”

Ink pouted, though he knew the other couldn’t see it. After he had figured out the puzzle by moving a few crates into the right position, he looked back at his host to see he had put on red, circle-rimmed glasses. He bounced up and went to the desk.

“I didn’t know you wear glasses!” He exclaimed, leaning in to try and get a closer look.

Error visibly squirmed, his head flinging back as far as physical possible. He was jarred with Ink’s sudden closeness. Ink didn’t seem to be phased and simply continued to stare, his eyes blinking and changing shape.

“Yeah… it’s because my eyesight is shit.” He was regretting putting them on. As much as he thought he liked Ink, the sudden close proximity of the other set him on edge. “Can you…?” He motioned between him and his neighbor.

“Oh!” Ink leaned back and laughed. “I didn’t notice I was so close! Why don’t you wear them all the time?”

“They look stupid.” Error shrugged.

Ink was about to inform him that they did _not_ look stupid and how much he liked them when Error’s phone dinged. He tilted his head as he watched Error pick up the phone and look at the message.

“Who is it?” He asked, though it really wasn’t his business. But he was curious and he didn’t really think before speaking. Error’s eyes flicked to him before looking back at his phone to continue typing.

“Just my friend. He sees I’m online and wants to play a game with me.” Error said as he sent the message declining Cross’s offer.

“I’ll play with him!” Ink turned and was going to shoot to the couch but was stopped by Error grabbing the back of his shirt.

“I already told him no. Just keep playing your Legend of Mettaton game.”

Now Ink really did pout. He crossed his arms.

“I don’t take orders from you.” He huffed.

“No, you don’t. But Cross is brutal in games and he’ll slaughter you and you’ll hate him for it. That’s not how I’d like for you guys to be introduced to each other.” Error rubbed his temple gently.

Ink, satisfied with his answer, nodded. He tried to ignore the giddy feeling in his stomach. The way Error had phrased the sentence made it sound like he wanted to introduce him to his friends. It might have just been something Error said without thinking, but Ink was going to press anyway.

“Sooo, that means I get to meet your friends?” He asked, grinning.

Error cocked a brow at his expression before laughing.

“I guess? You’ve been at my place two nights in a row. You’re pretty much like a resident friend of mine now.”

Ink paused. He had called him a friend. That was good… right? But what if Error only considered him a friend? That made the thrill of the chase more exciting.

“I’ll try not to make a habit of it.” Ink mumbled, laughing softly. Error blinked.

“I never said I minded.”

Ink’s face brightened up for the second time that night. Error tried not to sputter at how cute it was.

“Great!” He said happily before scuttling back to the couch to continue playing.

Error sighed and looked at his phone. Cross had responded.

_“Hey, wanna play Call of Honor 3?”_

_“No, I’m working on stuff for class.”_

_“Then why does it say you’re playing Legend of Mettaton?”_

_“It’s my neighbor playing it.”_

_“The cockroach lady?”_

_“No, the new neighbor.”_

_“Oh… I guess you like her?”_

_“It’s a he.”_

_“Oh… I guess you like him?”_

Error frowned at the phone. He didn’t really want to discuss Ink with Cross. Not in this way, at least. Cross would make fun of him for catching even the small amount of feelings he had in such a short time. It wasn’t like him to let a practical stranger sleep on his couch for the night. But something about Ink made him… trust him.

_“He’s cool.”_

_“You know that’s not what I meant.”_

“Error! Look! I beat the first boss!” Ink cried happily from the couch. Error turned and watched the small cutscene where the monster died. Then he looked to Ink’s face. He was so proud of himself that both of his eyes had matched by forming stars. For once he was glad that he had put on his glasses. Without them, he doubted he would have seen that face. He gave Ink a soft laugh and a smile.

“Are video games better now?” He asked.

“Maybe… They’re more fun when you’re winning.” The artist shrugged and turned back around to face the TV.

_“Ok… maybe I like him.”_   

He turned his phone on vibrate and turned back to his computer. He really did need to get this essay finished. Before he could really get back in the grove of writing, his phone buzzed.

_“Just use protection. You don’t know where he’s been.”_

He held in a groan and didn’t give into the urge of dropping his forehead onto the desk.

* * *

 

Ink had played video games that night longer than he thought he would ever play a video game. Error had been calling hints to him when he needed it, but he had more fun figuring it out himself. When Error was done with his homework, they both decided to go to bed. It was late, Error looked exhausted, and he was tired himself. So, he curled up on the couch with his blanket as Error turned off the light. It was nice to sleep in the same room with someone else. He had been sleeping on the couch in his and Dream’s apartment for the past couple of months while he decided what to do. It had been… kind of lonely. Error’s soft breathing helped lull him into sleep, where he dreamed of being an explorer of many worlds, armed with a paintbrush and fighting monsters… While dressed in a green suit and long hat.

He awoke to the sound of running water, rubbing his eyes and stretching softly. It was still dark outside, so he knew it was early. Error was probably showering and getting ready to go to school. Ink didn’t want to move, so he curled back into his blanket and shut his eyes, knowing he’d have to get up soon so that Error could leave.

He dozed off again, missing when his neighbor exited the shower and got his things ready because he woke up to Error gently shaking him.

“Ink… Ink…” He murmured.

“No…” He whined. “Not right now…”

“Ink. I gotta go.”

“Have a good day, Dream.”

“I’m not Dream.”

That’s when Ink opened his eyes to Error frowning at him gently.

“Oh. You really aren’t Dream.” He tried to laugh it off. Error rolled his eyes. He sat up.

“I gotta go, Ink.” Error stood up straight. He already had his backpack on and was holding a shiny foil packet in one of his hands.

“Toaster pastries? You really are twelve.” Ink laughed sleepily. Still, he slipped on his shoes and stood, gathering his things.

“I told you, it’s twelve and a _half._ ” His counterpart returned as he led him out into the hall, locking the door behind him.

“I know, I know.” Ink waved it off. “Have a good day, Error.” He smiled. Error gave him a soft smile in return and Ink’s soul leaped.

“You too, Ink.” He said before heading down the stairs.

Ink watched him go before yawing and going into his own apartment. He put his pillow down on the floor before laying down again. He needed to make a call, but for now he was going back to sleep until a more reasonable hour.

 

* * *

 When he finally woke up, he looked at his phone. It was 10 am. The perfect time to call Blue. He went to make himself a cup of coffee but quickly realized that his small coffee maker was still packed. He really needed to unpack today. And clear a space for his bed. He grumbled and sat back on the floor, pressing his friend’s contact in his phone.

“Ink? How’s the new apartment?” The excited voice came on the line quickly. Ink chuckled softly.

“It’s good, but something-“ Ink was cut off by another question.

“Is it weird living on your own? I can’t imagine living by myself.”

“Uh… It’s nice, actually. Blue I called-“

“That’s great! Are you settled in yet? Unpacked?”

“Not yet, but there’s-" 

“You really need to get started on that. Your first day of work is tomorrow. Did you forget?”

“I didn’t forget… I’m going to unpack today. Look Blue, I called to tell you-“

“Have you mapped out your route to work? Commuting takes a lot of time. Have you gotten your subway pass yet? You can probably just get it tomorrow at the station. But get there early so you have plenty of time!”

That… was something he hadn’t thought about. His stomach dropped. What was he going to do? He would have to take out some time today to figure things out. None of his friends knew how the transit system in the city worked. Maybe he could search it on the internet and see what came up.

“Ink? You still there?”

“Y-yeah, Blue! I’m working on all that right now.” He laughed nervously.

“Oh, okay then! What were you trying to tell me?”

Ink blinked. What had he been trying to say?

“Um…” He paused, trying to remember. Then it hit him. “I met my neighbor!”

“That’s great! Are they nice? If you like them, I’m sure they’re nice.”

“He… can be nice I get the feeling that he’s only nice to people he wants to be nice to.”

“I guess you’re one of those people?”

“I guess so!” He chirped happily, then added, “But that’s not all.”

“Oh? What else?”

“I like him.”

“Obviously. Why else would you tell me about him?”

“No, Blue, I _like_ him.”

There was silence on the other end.

“Blue?”

“It’s been two days, Ink!” Blue cried, but there was laughter in his voice. “Who knew you were so hopeless?”

Ink let out a relieved laugh.

“I think we all knew, just not with this particularly.”

“Nope… You and Dream were together for how long?”

“… Two years…”

“And you were high school sweethearts too. Is it weird… finding that you like someone else?”

Ink nodded, then realized that Blue couldn’t see him.

“Yeah… And I didn’t expect it so quickly. Me and Dream have been friends since kindergarten. I guess it feels… kind of weird.”

“Understandably…” Blue paused. “You sound… hesitant about this.”

Ink sighed. Of course, Blue would pick up on the little intricacies.

“Yeah… I think I feel bad. Dream and I broke up only two months ago…”

“Let me be frank, Ink, your relationship was over longer than two months ago. Both of you knew it. It was just official two months ago.”

“I know, I know. I feel like I’m… hurting Dream somehow by having feelings for this guy. I’m not in love with him or anything, but it still feels like betrayal.” He frowned.

“You can’t help how you feel. And Dream _isn’t your boyfriend anymore._ That’s the point. You’re not betraying anyone by having feelings for someone. You should just enjoy this. Your first crush besides Dream! It’s wonderful!”

Ink blushed and tried to cover his face with his shirt. He did call Blue to gush about Error, but it still felt embarrassing. Probably because, like Blue said, he hadn’t liked anyone besides Dream.

“Y-yeah… I don’t know if he likes me, though…”

“Does it matter right now? You said it wasn’t serious. You can just enjoy the moments you have with him. Maybe even flirt with him… You ARE single, y’know. You can be free.” Blue laughed.

Ink gave his own laugh.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right, Blue.”    

 

* * *

 

At about midday, Error popped into Cross’s office with their usual lunch of sandwiches from the small stall located in their building on campus. Error didn’t have an office, since he wasn’t a teaching assistant, so he hung out in Cross’s when his friend was there. There were technically three people stationed in the office, but the other two were hardly in except for their office hours, and Error had one of their blessings to use their desk when they weren’t in. He sat down in said desk before throwing his friend one of the sandwiches.

“Roast beef? Again? Can’t they change it up?” Cross grumbled.

“It was that or egg salad.” Error shrugged and began to open the plastic box that housed his lackluster meal.

Cross grimaced and accepted his sandwich, given the alternative. He did NOT want to have to use a subway bathroom on his way home that night. They ate in silence for a moment before Cross began the interrogation he had been planning since the night before.

“So… your neighbor…” He began.

Error frowned. He knew it was coming, but he still didn’t want to talk about it.

“What about him?” He asked, food in his mouth.

“Uh… Just tell me about him? I want to know who was able to crack your cold, dark, mean, little heart.” Cross replied, mouth equally full.

“It’s been two days. He hasn’t cracked anything.”

“You let him into your apartment, and he played your video games, so he was there a while. That’s something. You hardly invite me over, but this guy you hardly know is allowed to come over and play games? I’m jealous.”

Error glared at him.

“I don’t invite you over because you’re messy. Just look at you. You can’t even eat right.”

Cross looked down at himself. It was true, he had lettuce splattered on his chest and little droplets of mustard. He shrugged.

“Doesn’t negate my point. You don’t like people. Have you touched him yet?” Cross took another bite, squirting a bit more mustard onto his shirt. Error grimaced.

“No, I’m not a sexual predator.” He snapped. Cross just laughed.

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it, ass. Stop trying to avoid my questions.”

“Ugh, fine. We shook hands…” Error paused. “And one night he accidentally grabbed my leg to push himself up.”

Cross blinked.

“And? What happened?” He asked.

“That’s just it, nothing happened. The handshake was alright, but I didn’t short circuit when he touched my leg.” He looked away. It was embarrassing to talk about.

“That’s great.” Cross said, his voice happy. Finally, Error looked back at his friend.

“What?”

“It’s great news! I know you’re not really in relationships because of the touching thing, so this is really awesome! You found someone you can kind of stand.” Cross laughed. Error just looked away again.

“That’s…” Error paused. “I guess it is good.”

Cross continued to grin.

“What’s his name?” He asked.

“You don’t need to know.”

“What am I gonna call him when I give my best man’s speech at your wedding?”

That got Error to blush. Cross laughed.

“It’s been two days, Cross! Two days! Stop making stupid jokes!”

“Two days and he’s playing your video games, and his touch doesn’t make you reboot. Maybe tonight you’ll have a sleepover and you’ll propose to him!” Cross couldn’t contain his laughter.

“Shut up! And he stayed over last night.” Error hissed before realizing what he had said. Cross dropped his sandwich onto his desk, sending a miniature tsunami of lettuce onto his laptop.

“He what? That’s really fast for you, Error. You went from accidental leg touching to that?”

“Ugh, no! He doesn’t have a bed, so I offered for him to stay over. He slept on the couch.”

“Oh. You don’t let me sleep on the couch!” Cross cried, then remembered his mission. “On the Error Scale of Affection, that’s pretty high, just saying.”

Error groaned. He hated the Error Scale of Affection. It had been something his therapist had given to his mom when he was a kid so that his whole family could work on his haphephobia and work on the scale. Cross had been introduced to it when he visited Error at home during undergrad. It had evolved from touching to Error in general. Chara had been the one to warp it when they had been “dating.” Since he wasn’t great at showing affection with touch, he had to learn other ways and Chara had charted it. Most of his attempts were utter failures. He was thankful for his friends, but sometimes it felt like they went a little too far

“You’re messy!” Error huffed again.

“And he’s not? He’s a guy!” Cross was getting a bit excitable now. Error could tell because his food was clinging to his cheeks.

“I’m not messy and I’m a guy!”

“You’re weird!”

“You go to anime club. That’s weird!”

“Epic goes to anime club too!”

“That’s even weirder! He’s not even a student! He’s a security guard!”

“Um, excuse me?” A voice came from the door. The two immediately straightened up. Cross even wiped his mouth with a napkin.  

Standing in the door was a small skeleton, looking in at them with his violet eyes.

“Oh, it’s just you. Hey, Nightmare.” Cross brushed the lettuce off his shirt.

“Just me?” Nightmare frowned and stepped into the office.

“I thought you were a student.” Cross shrugged. His demeanor had changed a bit now that someone else was in the office. That’s how he was; he was quiet, and some people even said intimidating, in front of people he didn’t know, or didn’t know well.

“I _am_ a student.” Nightmare grumbled as he slid his backpack off and pulled a DVD out of it. “I just wanted to return this.” He handed Cross the package.

“Did you like it?” Cross asked.

“No, not really.” Nightmare shrugged. “I’ll see you next Monday.” He waved slightly before leaving the room.

“Who’s that?” Error asked.

“Some kid from anime club. He never likes anything I let him borrow, but he keeps asking me for stuff to watch… Why are you looking at me like that?” Cross frowned.

“He likes you.” Error laughed. “Aw, Crossie, you have an admirer.”

“No, he doesn’t! He wants to wear me down by insulting every single anime I like.” Cross threw the DVD into his own bag.

“He’s playing hard to get.” Error snickered.

“It doesn’t work that way!” Cross cried. “Hey! Wait! We’re supposed to be talking about you!”

At that exact moment, Error’s phone went off. It was a number he didn’t know, so his first instinct was to not answer, but he decided to.

“One second, Cross.” He paused, answering. “Hello?”

“Error?!” A panicked Ink’s voice came across the phone. It jolted him.

“What? Ink? Are you alright?” He asked quickly.

“I need help with the subway!” Error could hear just how upset this made him. “I’m so confused! I don’t know which line to take, how long it’ll take, and I don’t know which pass to buy and I need to figure it all out by tomorrow!”

Error paused and let out a deep breath. So, it wasn’t a “I’m stranded in some strange part of the city and I don’t know how the subway works.” Type of emergency.

“Okay, I’m gonna need you to take a deep breath.” Error instructed. He heard the intake of breath over the receiver. “Okay, one… two… three… let it out.” Exhale. “So you feel better?”

“A little bit? Error, I’m still having a problem!”

“I know, and I’ll help you when I get home tonight. Is that alright?”

There was a pause on the other end. Error was about to get worried when he heard another deep breath.

“Yeah, that’s fine. Thank you, Error!” Ink said happily. “I’ll let you go. I just got so worked up.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll see you later.” Error smiled slightly.

“See ya!” Ink said cheerily before hanging up the phone.

Error pulled his phone away just in time to see Cross giving him a sly look over the top of his almost finished sandwich.

“Oh cute,” Cross jeered. “You even smiled.”

Error groaned.

“It’s so cute that you’re taking care of him. Your little…” He paused. “ _Inky._ ”

And that was when Cross caught a mayonnaise packet with his face.  

                                                                                                                             


	4. Wanted Advice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ink finally meets Error's ex. She has a few tips for him.

When Error had gotten home that night, he had gone over to Ink’s and helped him settle his subway issues. He even printed maps and schedules, helping Ink mark where he needed to be and when. Luckily for the artist, he only had to ride for one stop. He hadn’t thought too much about living in the city, but now he knew it was much more difficult than he had imagined at first. He was thankful for Error’s help, promising himself that he would do something nice for him.

It was now Wednesday morning and Ink was putting the finishing touches on his outfit for the day. He had instructions to dress nice, but not too nice. To dress with his own style but keep it classy. He didn’t know much about fashion, but he put on what he thought would be good before slipping on his coat and wrapping his scarf around his neck. It was cold outside, so he needed to dress warm for his commute.

He stepped outside of his apartment and locked it, just as Error was stepping out.

“How lucky! We can walk to the station together!” He said happily as Error locked his own door. His neighbor yawned.

“How do you have so much energy?” Error grumbled. He still waited for Ink to catch up with him before heading down the stairs.

“I’m just really excited for my first day of work.” Ink chirped. He recoiled when Error opened the door to the building, the frigid air going straight through his clothes and into his marrow.

“Told you to dress warm.” Error laughed at his misery.

“I did! I guess it’s not warm enough…” He shivered, puffing air into his cold hands in an attempt to warm them.

“Here.” Error huffed, pulling off his own gloves and pushing them into Ink’s hands.

“Wha? I can’t take these, Error. Your hands will be cold now.” Ink tried to give them back, but Error waved him off.

“I don’t need them. Besides, I can’t let a baby run around New Home City without gloves, can I?” He smirked. Ink pouted.

“I’m not a baby! Take your gloves back!” Ink growled, trying to force them onto Error again, but the other just laughed and dodged.

“Nope. Babies are short. You’re short. Therefore, you’re a baby.”

“You’re not much taller! And don’t call me short!” Ink began hopping, trying to get the gloves anywhere onto Error’s body. But the student was a master of evasion. He seemed to know exactly when and where Ink was going to be.

“Just put them on, Ink.” Error laughed again and Ink finally conceded.

“Fine, but I’ll get you back for this.” He huffed, slipping the gloves onto his fingers. They were warm, and he did feel much better. Error was too nice to him. Even when he was being a jerk.

“Is giving you gloves to wear really worth revenge? I guess I need to think twice about being nice to you.” Error laughed once more, seeming to have perked up from his grogginess.

“No but calling me short _is_.” He crossed his arms. “I’ll find something to make fun of you for.”

“You already make fun of me for playing video games.”

“That doesn’t count.”

“Is it because you enjoy them now too?”

“No! It’s unrelated.”

“Well, sorry to disappoint you, but there’s not much I’m ashamed of.”

“I’ll find something.”

“How?”

“I’m about to meet your ex, aren’t I? I’m sure they have plenty of stories.” He grinned at Error, who was only gently frowning.

“You’ll have to figure out who it is first, shorty.”

“Error!”

“We’re here.” Error changed the subject just as they got to the stairway that would lead them underground to the subway. “Got your temporary pass?”

Ink pulled the folded-up piece of paper out of his pocket that they had printed off the night before.

“Yep! Wait…” Ink scrunched his face up and looked at Error. “You’re treating me like a kid again!”

Error laughed.

“Maybe you just bring out the mother in me. You’re about the size of a child.”

“Take your gloves back, asshole!” Ink peeled them off and tossed them right into Error’s face. This just caused the other to howl in laughter.

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry!” Error bounced down the stairs, Ink following after him, still grumbling.

They walked to the turnstiles and Error scanned his metro card and Ink scanned the barcode on his piece of paper. He held his breath, waiting for the red light to turn green. When it did, he sighed in relief and pushed through. Error was waiting for him.

“Okay… You need the green line…” Error mumbled to himself, looking at the signs. “This way.” He motioned for Ink to follow him.

As they walked, Error pointed at various signs and what they meant, where Ink would need to c check to make sure he was going on the train that was heading into the city rather than out of the city. Ink tried to commit everything to memory, but most of it was in one earhole and out the other. He was about to get overwhelmed with all the information he was already forgetting, when they stopped.

“And this is your platform.” Error announced. The platform wasn’t busy, but it wasn’t empty either. It was filled with early birds like him who wanted to make sure they were on time, or who had a long way to go.

“Thanks for helping me, Error.” He smiled at the other skeleton, forgetting about Error’s insults. Error stared at him for a moment before smiling.

“No problem. If you need help again, you can always call me.” He said.

“Do you usually leave at this time?” Ink asked.

“Yeah, most days. Why?”

“Maybe we could-“ Ink was cut off by the screech of metal on metal as his train came to a halt at the platform. “Ah! I gotta go!” He turned quickly to leave, but Error caught his sleeve.

“Not without saying goodbye.” Error gently patted Ink’s chest, which puzzled the artist but he decided to ignore it for the moment.

“Bye!” He said happily.

“Bye.” Error returned.

He turned on his heel and darted into the train, grabbing a seat before anyone else could. Not that he needed to race to it, since there were plenty of seats for everyone that was getting on. He started to pull his sketchbook from his messenger bag when he noticed something in the chest pocket of his coat: a pair of gloves. He smiled to himself.

  _Oh Error._

* * *

 

When he got to the art gallery, Ink had to use the buzzer on the door, since they technically weren’t open yet. He was a bit flustered. Error’s directions for the subway had been perfect and easy to follow; he hadn’t had any problems. But getting the art gallery had been tough. He was glad to have left his apartment when he did. He arrived just on time.

A few moments passed before a girl came to the door and unlocked it, smiling slightly at him.

“Ink?” She asked.

“Yep!” He replied cheerily as she let him inside.

“It’s nice to meet you. My name’s Chara. I’m the daughter of the owners.” She said and locked the door back. “I’ll be training you today. For the first few weeks you’ll really only be learning about the art and our artists, and how to work the system. It can get kind of confusing, but we have cheat sheets.” She winked at him.

They were walking through the gallery. It was small, but Ink was wide eyed as he stared at the pieces on display. Seeing other’s work filled him with inspiration. He wanted to sit down on one of the benches and begin sketching right away, but at least even he had enough sense to squash the impulse. Later, after work, all bets were off.

“That’s great! I have a poor memory, so that’ll be pretty helpful…” He admitted, scratching his cheek. He realized he was still wearing the gloves Error lent him, so he moved to pull them off.

Chara paused and watched him.

“Huh. My ex used to have gloves exactly like that. Wow, I haven’t thought about him in years.” She laughed and continued walking. “Let me show you the basement. That’s where our offices and storage is. We don’t keep any paintings down there; all the ones we have in the gallery are the ones on display and…” 

Ink spaced out. He was pretty sure he had found Error’s ex, which was exciting. Before he could figure out how to broach the subject, Chara had moved on. Now he was trying to figure out exactly how to bring it back up. He wasn’t exactly tactful, so he knew he couldn’t broach the subject naturally. And then he realized Error’s ex was a _girl._ What if Error wasn’t even attracted to guys? That would put a damper on things. But if this girl liked art and was kind of artsy, hadn’t he predicted that Error would like artists?

“Ink? …Ink?” Chara was staring at him. He blinked, then laughed.

“Y-yeah? Sorry… I was lost in my thoughts…” He admitted, rubbing the back of his skull.

“…” She frowned at him before laughing. “So, you’re a space cadet? Noted.” He blushed slightly. “I was just saying that here’s the door to the basement.” She gestured to the open door that led to stairs.

“Ah…” He laughed again before descending. She followed after him. “Um… I guess I have to ask… Would your ex happen to be named Error?”

There was a pause, then a laugh.

“Actually, yeah. How’d you figure?”

“The gloves… They’re Error’s that he let me borrow this morning.”

“He let you borrow his gloves?”

“Yeah, we were walking to the train station together and my hands were cold so he gave me his gloves.” _Made fun of me a lot too._ He added mentally. They reached the landing and he turned to look at Chara. She looked thoughtful.

“That’s pretty high on the Error Scale of Affection.” She mumbled to herself, still puzzled. “How do you know him?” She asked instead.

“What’s the Error Scale of Affection?” He asked. “And he’s my neighbor.”

She laughed. 

“It’s something stupid we did in college. He’s not the best at showing that he cares, and he already had a scale from childhood for his haphephobia, so we just messed with it. We kind of ranked his shows of affection, usually for me. He HATED it.” She was laughing in earnest now. “I guess he learned from it, if he’s giving you his gloves.”

Ink colored a bit, and it didn’t go unnoticed by the young woman.

“You seem pretty interested in your neighbor…” She led him to the far side of the basement, where the break area was. Everything was tidy and clean. The coffee pot was just finishing and Ink relished the smell.

“H-He’s interesting.” He said truthfully. She tilted her head and laughed.

“Maybe sometime I could tell you stories about him… Since he’s so _interesting._ ” She laughed again. “Okay, but seriously, let’s get started.

* * *

 

The day passed mostly uneventfully. Surprisingly, Ink was really good at committing artists to memory. He memorized their artwork and who had produced it quickly. It was easier to attach a name to a painting rather than to a face. Chara would randomly pop in to check on him, and she always ended with a random fact about Error.

“He _really_ loves chocolate. He’ll eat all variations.”

“He really likes stars and LOVES going stargazing. Bonus if it’s camping.”

“He likes things to be neat. He hates clutter.”

She seemed to relish in teasing him. He didn’t like how obvious it seemed that he liked Error. Maybe it was because he steered the conversation back to him after they had moved on to another topic. That was probably it. Chara seemed so happy to give him facts. It was as if she was hoping to set him up with Error. Pushing him towards him.

“Hey Chara?” He asked as they began closing up the gallery for the day. He had met a few other workers, but they were part time and hadn’t left much of an impression on him. He had forgotten them already.

“Yeah?” She asked as she began dimming the lights.

“Does Error…” He took a breath. “Does like like…?”

“Skeletons?” She asked. “Yeah.”

“N-Not what I meant…”

“Oh!” She turned towards him. “Yeah. It’s actually why we broke up.”

“It was?” His eyes were exclamation points. Chara smiled awkwardly at him.

“Yeah… He figured it out, and we broke up. We were still friends after… I guess we still are, though I haven’t spoken to him in a long time. It’s nice to see someone interested in him. I just want him to be happy.” She shrugged and they moved to the front door. He smiled at her.

“It’s good that he has a friend like you. Was it hard? Being friends with your ex?” He asked, thinking about Dream.

“Sometimes? I liked him a lot, even if he could be an ass. But I guess I knew for a while that things weren’t working out. I was glad to have figured it out, but it was still sad. He felt bad about it, but it wasn’t something to feel bad about. Some people just aren’t compatible, no matter how much they want to be. I loved him, and I know he loved me, but he couldn’t love me in the way that I needed to be.” She locked the door behind them.

“Oh.” Ink said thoughtfully. It sounded a lot like him and Dream. Only, he was the one who couldn’t love Dream the way he needed to be.

“And now that we’re off work, I can tell you one more thing about Error.” She spun to face him. “About the chocolate… he’ll also eat it off of anywhere…” She winked and skipped down the sidewalk before he could react. “See you tomorrow!” She waved and disappeared around a corner. 

Ink was left to find his way home as a flustered mess from imagining him… chocolate… and Error. He had to tuck his head into his scarf to hide his embarrassment.


	5. Chocolate Cake and Pizza

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unplanned movie night leads to an unexpected kiss.

For the remained of the week, the two neighbors walked to the subway station together. Ink made sure he woke up in time, though he usually didn’t have time for breakfast before leaving. However, he was able to grab a bagel at one of the shops near the gallery because he arrived with plenty of time every morning. Chara was usually there early and would let him in. He was able to find his way every morning easily, which was a first for him. He would get lost in his own neighborhood as a kid, but with Error’s detailed maps he was able to make it. Ink had embarrassedly told him that he got pretty lost on the way home on his first day and without saying anything, Error had gone to work. He printed several copies of the area surrounding the gallery and marked the route Ink needed to take to get to and from the subway station. He even made a small one so that it would fit in Ink’s wallet.

“That’s pretty high on the Error Scale of Affection.” Chara and said after Ink explained why he had all the maps. One for his bag, one for his coat, one for his pants, and one in his wallet.

“You say that about everything he does for me.” Ink sighed. It had been that morning, Friday morning.

“Because everything he does for you is high!” She laughed. “It’s new territory.”

“I’m sure stuff he did for you was high on the scale.” He huffed, scribbling some more in his sketchbook. He still needed to cash in on his winnings from his and Error’s bet. Maybe this weekend.

“Hm…” Chara thought. “I suppose so. But he doesn’t treat Cross anywhere near the way he treats you.”

“You know Cross?”

“Yep! I was the reason they became friends.” She brushed her hair off her shoulder.

“What’d you do?” He blinked, his eyelights changing.

“It was freshman year of college… I was a little for a sorority, and they were new recruits for different frats.”

“Wait, Error was in a fraternity?” Ink couldn’t believe it. Error was not the type. At least, he hadn’t thought so.

“For a whole two months and then he and Cross quit.” She laughed and shrugged. “But back to the story.”

“Oh yeah.”

“They were in different frats, and those frats HATED each other. My sorority was making a homecoming float with Cross’s frat and I knew Error from a class we had together. I got along with both of them pretty well, but call it meanness or just plain evil, I decided to make them fight over me.”

“They fought over you? Like a feud?”

She clicked her tongue.

“Cross didn’t seem interested at all. He was nice enough to me and was my friend, but he was indifferent towards me romantically. That didn’t stop me. I spread some rumors about myself and told him it was Error who spread them. Then I told Error it was Cross. We were working on our parade float when Error’s frat just kind of burst in and chaos broke out. Everyone was fighting. Error and Cross went straight for each other.” She was cackling.

“That’s harsh.” Ink was horrified that his boss could do such a thing. She finally calmed down.

“It was fine in the end. They figured out that it was just a stupid rumor and became friends after that. They never figured out it was me. I was going to tell them, but their friendship was going pretty well, and I didn’t want that to change.” She shrugged.

Ink had thought she was devious, but he supposed she got what she wanted: her two friends to become friends themselves. He was a bit jealous of her ruthlessness. He wouldn’t be able to go head first into something like that. He couldn’t even make up his mind on whether or not he should ask Error on a date.

On his way home, he stopped by the supermarket as he always did. He had to go just about every day because there was only so much he could carry the two blocks it took to get to his apartment. He wasn’t the best as making his own food, so he threw some frozen meals in his basket. He passed the boxed cake mixes and stopped.

_Maybe I should bake a cake for Error? To thank him?_

He frowned. He couldn’t bake and he didn’t even own a cake pan. He turned around and went to the bakery, scooping up a chocolate cake. He would take it over there tonight. Maybe by then he could channel Chara through him and ask him out.  She had made sure he remembered Error’s love for chocolate. It was only right to draw strength from her.

After getting into the apartment building, he passed Error’s room and listened for a moment to see if he was home yet or not. From the noise level, he was not. He sighed and went into his own apartment. He would just have to wait then.

He put his things away and laid down on his bed, pulling out his sketchbook and beginning to draw.

He awoke two hours later.

In a panic, he jumped up, checked the clock, grabbed the cake and ran next door. He hoped he hadn’t missed Error. Error didn’t seem like a person who wanted to go out and party on the weekend, but he hadn’t seemed the type to join a fraternity either. He knocked.

“Error?” He asked through the door. He could hear shuffling as his neighbor came to the door and opened it and…

“Hey, Er-“ He paused in his greeting, looking up at a skeleton that was more definitely not Error.

He was about the same height as Error, with one red eye and one white eye, and some kind of scar on his cheek. He was… intimidating. He stared down at the artist, unblinking and expressionless.

“Beer.” He said.

“U-um…” Ink paused, hoping the other skeleton would explain a bit more. A few seconds passed and the other didn’t say anything.

“Um… I’m his neighbor, Ink.”

The other skeleton shifted slightly.

“Will you tell him I came by?” Ink smiled at him. The skeleton looked from him to the chocolate cake in his hands. He tilted his head slightly before moving aside, offering for Ink to come in.

“He won’t be long. You can wait if you want.” The skeleton said.

Ink happily went in and placed the cake on the small counter before turning around to… What looked like a tornado had hit Error’s apartment. The other skeleton was watching him.

“There’s… mess…” Ink whispered. His companion flinched and moved into action, beginning to gather things and place them on top of a backpack that was sitting in the corner. The space became uncluttered in the span of a few minutes.

“Was that all your stuff?” Ink asked. The skeleton nodded. A silence passed between them. Then he grinned and extended a hand. “I’m Ink!”

The other grabbed his hand and gave it a light shake.

“Cross.”

Ink’s eyes immediately flashed to stars. It was his lucky day! He was meeting two of Error’s friends in one week. He wasn’t sure if Chara counted anymore, since she didn’t seem to talk to Error much anymore, but he had just met Cross! The other side of the trinity.

They sat down on the couch and Cross pulled out his phone, messing with it. Ink looked to the TV screen. It was showing the home screen of one of Error’s games, the one he suspected that Cross had wanted to play the other night.

“Why aren’t you playing?” Ink asked.

“You came.” He shrugged and went back to his phone. A man of few words, Ink concluded.

He decided to bring out his sketchbook and worked on the sketch he had been doing before work that morning. It was just the look of the office from his desk, but it was something. It was hard not to do it with his reference material, but he was going to try. He poked his tongue out of the side of his mouth, concentrating. For a brief moment he thought he heard the very soft click of a camera, but he ignored it.

“I’m back.” The door opened and Ink shot his head up, beaming.

“Hey, Error!” He said happily. Error gave him a small smile in return.

“Hey Ink. Cross.” Error moved to the little kitchen, setting his bags down. He glanced at the cake.

Taking his cue, Ink hopped up and went over to him.

“That’s for helping me so much this past week. Just my little way of saying thank you, since I can’t do much.” He laughed softly.

“You can do plenty.” Error said, putting a soda in the artist’s hands. “That’s for you.”

“I thought you were getting beer?” He asked.

“I did. But you don’t drink so I got you some sodas.” Error placed the others in the fridge. There was hardly anything in it.

“You hoping I was going to come by?” Ink asked, his heart beating happily.

“Cross told me you were here, so I made sure to get you something.” Error shrugged. Even if it wasn’t exactly what Ink had been hoping, Error still thought of him. He felt his eyes change to hearts, but he blinked quickly, setting them back to their different shapes.

Error had seen the brief flash, and tried not to think about it much, but it gave him a spark of hope. Maybe he really should take Cross’s advice and just ask him out. He still couldn’t be sure that Ink would say yes though… He hated to admit that he was nervous about it.

“Thanks!” Ink chirped, opening his soda. Error took a can of beer for himself and one for Cross. He started to head to the couch when he saw Cross had gotten up and was sprawled on his bed.

“What are you doing?” He stopped.

“I’m laying down.” Cross said, moving to prop himself up on one elbow to look at the two. He had a slight smirk on his face that Error read clearly.

“No. I meant, why did you move from the couch?”

“S’more comfy over here.” Cross winked slightly. Error frowned, eyes narrowing. He knew what Cross was playing at, and it took all of him not to launch himself at his friend and throttle him. He did NOT want to be teased in front of Ink.

Ink looked between the two, his eyes changing to question marks. He wasn’t sure what was going on between the two, but he could sense Error tensing. And then, Error felt relaxed again.

Without a word, Error walked to the one window in the apartment and opened it, letting the crisp night air in. He held one of the cans out towards Cross.

“Cheers, Cross.” He grinned before moving his arm over to the window and releasing the can so that it dropped down.

“Dude!” Cross scrambled up from the bed and shot towards the door.

“I thought you only called Epic that?” Error asked through his laugh.

“Shut up!” Cross cried before he exited the apartment to retrieve his beer.

“That was mean.” Ink was holding back a snicker of his own.

“He deserved it. And you’re laughing too.” Error pointed out.

“Yeah but…” Ink sputtered and then let out a full series of laughs. “It was funny…”

They settled on the couch now that Cross had vacated it.

“What was he teasing you about?” Ink asked.

“He was teasing about…” Error looked over at Ink and shook his head. “It’s not important…”

“…Is it as unimportant as…” Ink looked at him slyly. “The Error Scale of Affection?”

Error’s eyes suddenly were covered in “error” signs. Ink panicked.

“Error? Are you okay? I didn’t mean to…” He reached towards him but remembered what Chara had said about haphephobia. It would be better not to touch him in this situation.

The signs faded and Error’s eyes went back to normal. Ink smiled in relief.

“I’m so sorry! I… I didn’t mean to upset you.” Ink said quickly. Error laughed.

“You just… surprised me. I haven’t had a glitch that sudden in a long time.” Error continued laughing. “I guess you found my ex then?”

“Chara? She’s my boss. She’s told me a lot of stories about you…” Ink said slyly, deciding it was okay to go back to teasing. “I promised I would find something to tease you about.”

Error groaned.

“And she’s a gold mine for that…” He leaned back on the couch. “We were going to order pizza. You wanna stay?” He asked. Ink perked up.

“Yeah!”

“I’m back.” Cross stated as he opened the door, panting heavily. “I found this.” He said and moved out of the way, revealing a small skeleton with bright golden eyes.

“Hi everyone. I came to check on you, Ink.” Dream said, smiling happily. “Blue really wanted to come but Papyrus needed him for something… I think he just didn’t want Blue in this… part of town.”

Ink hopped up. He wasn’t sure if he was excited to see his friend or not. It had kind of been… nice to not think about him for the past week. He knew Dream was keeping a respectful distance, and he appreciated it. He had been a little caught up in Error to really think about his past amour too much. That didn’t mean he wasn’t happy to see him.

“Hey, Dream!” He said happily. “Sorry, Error. I guess I’ll have to get pizza with you guys another time.”

Error tilted his head.

“You both could stay.” He offered. Cross frowned at him in surprise.

Dream blinked, but Ink cheered.

“Great! C’mon Dream. You gotta meet everyone!” Ink dragged Dream into the small apartment. A soda was placed in his hand and hands were shaken and names exchanged. Ink was able to observe Error shaking someone else’s hand. He did look pretty uncomfortable. He tried to remember if he had looked like that when he shook his hand, but, unsurprisingly, he couldn’t remember.

“What kind of pizza do you want?” Cross asked, pulling out his phone to make the order. They had all sat back down, Error and Ink on the couch and Cross and Dream on the bed.

“Cheese, please.” Dream spoke up first.

“Cheese?” Cross asked, meaning to confirm. But Dream squirmed under his gaze.

“I’m vegetarian.” Dream spouted.

“…” Cross continued to look at him. Dream felt even more awkward.

“I-I don’t like to eat meat because the animals feel so many negative feelings in the process and it makes me ill.” Dream rushed out, his hands fidgeting with his pants.

“Cross, stop.” Error commanded, looking over at the two of them.

“I only asked what pizza he wanted.” Cross huffed, finally looking away and tacking onto his phone.

“You’re making him uncomfortable.” Error rolled his eyes.

“…” Cross answered, already typing in what kind of pizza he and Error wanted. It had been the same for years. “Ink?”

“I’ll eat whatever. I’m not picky.” Ink said, smiling slightly. It was kind of weird to have Dream hanging out with him and the new guy he liked. Cross seemed to be a good distraction for him. The other skeleton was too preoccupied with the scary guy next to him that he was hardly paying any attention to him and Error. He laughed softly to himself, thinking about what an odd couple the two would make.

“Ordered.” Cross announced. “We should watch a movie.”

“A movie? That’s boring. Don’t you have some games?” Ink asked, turning to Error who frowned and shrugged.

“Error doesn’t have many visitors.” Cross explained as he hopped up from the bed and plucked the game controller up. He scrolled through the applications until he found the streaming service he was looking for. “Let’s watch a scary one.”

“Scary?” Dream asked meekly, seeming to shrink back on the bed. Cross watched him.

“A really scary one.” Cross looked back to the screen. “The Haunting of Waterfall. That’s supposed to be good.”

“Dream doesn’t want to watch something scary.” Error sighed. “I told you to stop.”

“I stopped. Now I’m choosing a movie. No one else is saying anything, so that’s a yes.” Cross chose the movie.

Ink looked back at Dream, who was still cowering. He thought of moving to him to comfort him but… that wasn’t his job anymore. He wanted to sit here with Error and not be responsible for Dream… So, he decided to do just that. He turned away but could feel Dream watching him.

Before the movie could play, Error jumped up and snatched the controller from Cross.

“We’re not watching that.” Error huffed. Dream let out a sigh of relief. 

“We’re watching The Monster Centipede 5.”

 

* * *

 

Dream considered it a blessing from the highest being in all of the heavens when their pizza arrived. They had to pause the movie for Error to get it, and this gave Dream some time to breathe. It wasn’t that he thought that a giant centipede made of monsters was scary, it was all the jump scares thrown into the movie, along with the music. He caught that weirdo named Cross staring at him several times during the first half of the movie, and he was getting the feeling the other skeleton was just doing this to make him uncomfortable. Speaking of being uncomfortable…

He had to watch Ink and Error grow closer throughout the movie. After they got their food and started eating, he had to watch, with his own eyes, a practical stranger wipe pizza sauce off Ink’s face. He even noticed Cross was watching them intently. He wasn’t sure what to make of everything, but he knew he wanted to leave. Ink was doing fine.

Finally, the movie ended. He helped Error clean up. That was one good thing about the skeleton; he kept a clean house. Ink did not, though it wasn’t trash that the artist left around. It was art supplies, sketch books, mugs of coffee. It would probably drive Error insane.

“I’m going now. It was nice meeting you guys.” Dream said as he inched to the door. Cross began putting on his things.

“I’m leaving too.” Cross announced. Dream tried to hide his grimace. They would probably have to walk to the subway station together. “I’ll walk with you.” Dream tried not to sigh.

“Sounds good. Bye, Ink. Take care of yourself.” Dream smiled to his friend.

“Bye, Dream!” Ink gave him a hug and pulled back, stepping back inside Error’s apartment.

“You’re not going to your apartment?” Dream asked. He watched as Ink’s cheekbones became covered in a speckled dusting of rainbow.

“I’m going to eat cake with Error before heading back.” He said and shrugged. “I’ll see you around.” He closed the door on the two others.

Dream frowned and stared at the door, forgetting that his partner was waiting for him. He hadn’t expected to feel like this when he saw Ink with another person. But it was real. They were really over. Their friendship wasn’t the same. He didn’t even know about this Error person besides that Ink thought he looked neat. It was the end.

Cough.

He turned around to see Cross waiting for him. He tried to smile.

“S-Sorry… I was just thinking…” He laughed again and began to walk down the stairs.

He heard Cross climbing down behind him, but otherwise the skeleton was silent.

They walked down the sidewalk, side-by-side, in silence. It wasn’t entirely uncomfortable. Dream was glad. He wasn’t alone, but he didn’t have to say anything. Cross’s presence was enough, and even comforting, since he expected a thirty-foot creature to slither out of the shadows. He finally decided to break the silence.  

“Cross?” He asked.

“Hm?”

“He likes him, doesn’t he?” He asked.

“Who likes who?” Cross looked down at him.

“Error. Does Error like Ink?” Dream met his eyes for a brief second before looking back down at the ground. He heard the other let out a breath.

“And if he does?” Cross asked. Dream could feel his heart crumple. So it was true.

“Then…I…” Dream stopped walking. He was almost shaking. “Then it’s really over between me and Ink.”

“Did you date?”

“We broke up.” Dream frowned, glaring at a particular crack in the side.

“Then why is it over if Error likes him?” Cross tilted his head, gazing at the small skeleton.

“Because Ink likes him too. I can tell and then that means we really…” Dream caught his sob in his throat.

“That’s not your problem anymore.” Cross felt a bit awkward, since he wasn’t the best at advice. Dream wiped a few of his tears away.

“I-I know… I’m the one who broke up with him… I shouldn’t be sad… I just… I thought…” He shook his head. He wasn’t making any sense.

“Sometimes the best thing you can do to get over an ex is to distract yourself.” Cross nodded to himself, as if he believed he were giving the best advice in the world.

“Distract myself? How?” Dream asked, sniffling. He finally tilted his head upwards to look at his companion. The skeleton was looking down at him, but not in the same, intense way he had been all night.

“Like this.” Cross said. He gently grabbed Dream’s chin and leaned down.

Their mouths touched, and in that moment, Dream forgot about Ink.    

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Probably weren't expecting that kiss. (Maybe.)


	6. A Single Rose Can Change Everything

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Error actually wears his glasses for once.

After Ink closed the door to the apartment, he turned back to Error, who was looking at him strangely.

“What?” He asked, blinking.

“…Nothing, I guess.” Error shook his head. “I guess we should have cake, then?”

Ink nodded happily.

“Yeah! Make sure you cut a big piece for yourself.” He wandered to the kitchen, wanting to watch Error. And just be close to him. Their arms touched as Error started to serve.

“…Don’t tell me you’re scared.” Error looked down at him, mid-slice.

Ink thought about it. He wasn’t scared. The movie was stupid. Laughable, even. He could lie to Error and say that he was. Maybe Error would hold him close, protect him from the boogeyman. But he didn’t want to lie to Error, so he shook his head.

“Not really. Just really excited for cake.” Well, a little lie wouldn’t hurt. Error thrust a paper plate in his hands. “Oh. Thanks.” He smiled awkwardly and went back to the couch, plans foiled.

Error soon joined him and had a big piece of cake, as he had been instructed to do. Ink watched as he took a bite and seemed to savor it. He laughed softly.

“What?” Error asked, swallowing.

“It’s just… You looked like you really enjoyed that.” Ink laughed again.

“So what? You brought chocolate because Chara told you. You were being sneaky.” Error huffed and pointed his fork at Ink.

“Maybe… I just wanted to make sure you enjoyed your thank you gift!” Ink chimed. “By the way… Why did you keep telling Cross to stop?”

Error sighed.

“You see… Dream’s cute.” Error began. He looked at Ink who had started to scowl. He quickly tried to cover his mistake. “What I meant is that he’s cute to Cross.”

Ink’s face relaxed. Error sighed in relief. Maybe Ink did like him… He had thought it might be a possibility, but when he chose to stay with him instead of going home, and then stood so close to him in the kitchen, he was becoming more certain. And seeing that scowl when he mentioned that someone else was cute just seemed to confirm his suspicions.

“And Cross he’s… kind of intimidating when you first meet him.” Error continued.

“Yeah… He doesn’t say much and just stares.” Ink agreed, thinking back. “What does that have to do…?”

“He knows he’s intimidating, and being shy doesn’t help, so he flirts in a weird way.” Error frowned down at his cake. “He was staring at your friend pretty intensely to try and make him squirm. He then assessed the situation and figured Dream didn’t like being scared, so he chose a scary movie to watch. I always tell him to flirt like a regular monster, but he won’t listen.”

“You chose a scary movie too.” Ink pointed out.

“It wasn’t scary, it was stupid. But Cross was satisfied. I’m guessing he wanted to walk to the station with Dream, so he wanted a scary movie to make Dream want someone to walk with.”

“That’s diabolical.” Ink’s eyes widened in wonder.

“That’s Cross. Maybe Dream can distract him.” Error sighed.

“Distract him?” Ink was getting a bit bored of the Cross topic, but if it meant getting information on someone interested in Dream, he would continue.

“Yeah… He has another kid out for him. It’s some kid he knows from anime club. He stops by his office every single day. Doesn’t say much but annoys the hell out of Cross. His classes aren’t even in our building. It’s kind of funny, but Cross is pretty annoyed.” Error stuffed another piece of cake in his mouth.

_So,_ Ink thought, _Dream already has a rival_. If he wanted Cross, that is. He had watched his friend squirm under Cross’s gaze. He wasn’t so sure Dream would fall for someone like that. But his mind wandered back to the more important topic: Error.

“So…” Ink began, his voice turning sly. “How do you flirt?”

Error almost sputtered his cake out. He quickly swallowed as a blush spread over his cheekbones.

“W-why?” He asked.

“If Cross flirts weirdly, I was wondering if you do too.” Ink tilted his head, reveling in Error’s blush. So maybe the dark skeleton liked him as well.

“Um…” Error thought. “I don’t think I flirt weirdly. I haven’t really thought about it.”

“Hm…” Ink nodded in fake contemplation. “Will I know it if I see it?”

“Probably not.” Error half laughed. “Now that you know about the Error Scale of Affection, you probably know it was made because I’m terrible at showing how I feel.”

“I think you’re getting better at it.” Ink said without thinking.

“What?” Error frowned.

“Er… Chara… Is always saying stuff about the Scale…” Now Ink was embarrassed as well. He was basically having to admit he was talking about the things Error did for him and that Chara ranked them.

“She always loves a chance to embarrass me…” Error grumbled, stabbing his cake and shoveling a piece into his mouth. He wanted to drop the subject. Ink took the hint.

“So, I’ve decided to cash in my reward from the other night.” He said triumphantly.

“Oh? You wanted me to model for you right? I didn’t agree to doing it nude.” Error grinned, teasing. Ink instantly colored.

“I don’t want you to pose nude, anyway!” He huffed and crossed his arms.

“I was thinking,” Ink started. He needed to sell this correctly and hope that Error got the picture. “We could go to various spots around the city or maybe just one, and I could draw you in the scenery. We could make a date… a day of it.” He felt heat rush to his face at his ‘mistake’. A Freudian Slip, perhaps.

Error looked away. He had caught it, and he wasn’t sure what to do. It wasn’t like Ink had _really_ asked him on a date. A simple slip. But it had still been said, and by the blush on Ink’s face, it was something he hadn’t meant to say, but perhaps wanted to. Error looked back at him.

“Nighttime.” He said.

“Nighttime…?” Ink frowned, a bit confused.

“Nighttime. We should go out at night. I know you’re new to the city, so… You might not know, but there’s quite a lot of things going on at night. I think you’d like it.” Error looked away again.

“…Okay!” Ink agreed. “When should we go?”

“How about…” Error tried to think. Weeknights were out because of their schedules… Weekends were more fun, so... “Tomorrow?”

Ink grinned, his eyes forming double stars.

“Tomorrow night it is!”

 

* * *

 

“You did what?!” Error cried into the phone. He had called Cross that morning to talk to him about the prospect of a date with Ink and instead he got an update on Cross’s love life.

“Yeah. He was all sad about you flirting with Ink. Did you know they used to date?” Cross sounded nonchalant about it.

“They did?” Error thought about the picture on Ink’s home screen. That had been Dream, hadn’t it? He had noticed the picture wasn’t there the next time he saw Ink use his phone.

“Wait, never mind.” Error shook his head. “Don’t change the subject. You thought the best way to cheer him up was to kiss him?”

“Okay. I’m seeing how this sounds. But look on the bright side. He was mostly upset because he could tell Ink likes you back. So, I’m doing you a favor by distracting the ex so that you can move in.”

“Don’t try to justify kissing some random guy you just met with me… Ink likes me back?” Error asked. He felt like a schoolgirl.

“That’s what Dream said. You should make a move.”

“We’re going on a maybe date tonight?” Error sounded so unsure of himself that he even blushed. He _was_ a schoolgirl.

“A maybe date? The hell is that?”

“We made a bet during the week and he won. His prize was that I would pose for him for a drawing and he wants to cash in on it tonight. He called it a date… and then corrected himself to ‘day.’” Error laid it all out for his friend.

“…” Cross was silent for a moment, thinking. “With what Dream told me and his slip, he wants it to be a date. You could treat it like one.”

“I don’t know how to date.”

“You dated Chara, right? What would you do if you were taking her on a date?”

“I guess I’d dress nice-“

“You really do need to get rid of that hobo-chic look you have going on.”

“Shut up! It’s comfy and it lasts.”

“We’ll talk about your ratty ass clothes later. Anyway, go on.”

“Next I’d…” Error blushed, sinking back into his couch. “I’d get her some flowers.”

“Good choice.”

“But he’s a guy.”

“Does it matter? It’s the thought that counts.”

“He’ll make fun of me.” Error grumbled, just imagining Ink’s reaction. He’d laugh and call him a weirdo for getting flowers for a guy.

“Would he? Maybe a single rose then.” Cross was trying his best. “It’ll show him your intention, but not be as big as a whole bouquet.”

“Is that what you would do for Dream?” Error teased, trying to break the tension he was feeling in the pit of his chest cavity.

“Nah, he’s a full bouquet of roses kind of guy.”

“You barely know him. Did he even like kissing you?”

“…He hit me, but only after he kissed me back. I got his number though.”

“…so happy for you.” Error grumbled. Maybe he should be as brash as Cross. “Okay, a rose it is.”

“Then what?”

“I guess we can eat something? I kind of promised to take him out to all the cool night spots.”

“The food trucks then. Casual, but fun.”

“Then I guess we can go up to the observatory deck of the Mettaton State Building. That has a good view for him to draw from, doesn’t it?”

“Maybe? I don’t know much about art, but it would be romantic.”

“You’re not helping. Maybe the park would be better?” Error sighed. Planning a date was hard.

“Both. You should do both.”

“Both? What if it’s too late after the observatory deck?”

“We both know the park is more fun after midnight.”

“That’s true. So, both it is.” Error nodded to himself. He paused.

“Don’t you think it’s weird that the guy you’re interested in is named Dream and the guy that’s interested in you is named Nightmare?” He asked. Cross groaned loudly into the phone.

“Please DON’T. I don’t think he’s interested in me. I think he just lives to annoy me. He’s a literal nightmare for me.”

“Just let him down easy.” Error laughed.

“I’M THE ONE THAT NEEDS TO BE LET DOWN EASY.”

 

* * *

 

Ink adjusted his collar in the mirror for the millionth time that evening. It didn’t even matter. He was going to be wearing his coat and scarf most of the night and if he did take it off, the collar would need adjusting anyway. But he was nervous, and he was fidgeting.

_Stars, Ink, it’s not really a date. Just two friends. Hanging out._

It was kind of romantic, though, going out on the town at night. Error seemed to think it would be better for drawing, and maybe that was true.

He grumbled and jerked his collar once more. His phone dinged as he received a text. He still had a while before they were going to head out, so he sat down on his bed and checked his messages. It was from Blue.

‘Do you know a person named Cross?’ His small friend asked.

‘Yeah. He’s Error’s friend. I met him last night.’

A pause.

‘HE KISSED DREAM!!!!’

The phone slid out of Ink’s hand. He blinked rapidly. Error did say that he could tell Cross was attracted to Dream. But _damn_ the guy worked fast. He felt a flurry of emotions swell up inside of him. He quickly picked up his phone again and texted Blue back.

‘What else did Dream say?’

‘I’m not supposed to tell you…’

Ink sighed.

‘But I will because it might help you feel better.’

Ink perked up at that. Make him feel better? How would it make him feel better? Maybe it would help his soul pick one emotion and let him feel it. Sometimes he wished he could just reach inside his chest cavity and pull the stupid thing out.

‘?’ He typed.

‘Dream didn’t know how to feel about it at first. But… He told me he liked it. He asked me for advice on how to approach Cross. Isn’t that wonderful?’  

Ink’s soul stopped its chaotic dance and he was flooded with the first emotion: relief. His relief was soon washed away and replaced with excitement. He grinned.

‘Wow! That’s great!’ He sent. It really _was_ great. He didn’t feel so bad about pursuing Error. If Dream had found someone else to be interested in, he was allowed to as well, right?

‘I know! I hope that makes you feel better about Error. Any updates?’

‘We’re going out tonight. Not as a date though. I’m going to have him model for me.’

‘Still sounds romantic~ Have fun!’

Ink smiled softly at his phone. He was happy for Dream, truly. He wasn’t sure how good of a fit Cross was for him, but that wasn’t his place. It was an unofficial, unspoken end to their mourning period. Now he just had to worry about making a move on Error before he fell too far into the “friend zone” and couldn’t get out.

He lost himself in his thoughts when his phone rang. He jumped and looked down. Oh, it was just the alarm he set. He had five minutes to finish getting ready. He sprang up and hastily put on his coat and wrapped his scarf around his neck. He slipped on his shoes and was picking up his messenger bag when he heard a knock at the door. He smiled slightly.

“Coming!” He called and double checked to make sure he had everything he needed for the night.

Sketchbook, pencils, charcoal (just in case), wallet, phone… He frowned and turned around. It was sitting on the bed. He quickly tucked it into his pack. He checked one more time. His keys. He looked up. They were hanging next to the door. Error had suggested it.

_“If you put something in the same place every day, it’ll become a habit for you to get it from that place.”_

Ink smiled at the memory. Error was so patient with his memory issues. He said he had them too, but he had worked on it since he was a kid, so it wasn’t so bad now.

“I’m ready-“ Ink started as he opened the door, but stopped in his tracks.  

Error was standing just beyond the threshold, dressed better than Ink had ever seen him. He wasn’t dressed to the nines by any means, but he still looked sharp. He was wearing a maroon dress shirt, untucked, jeans that didn’t have any holes or scuffs, those same ratty tennis shoes, and a leather jacket Ink had never seen. The cherry on top was that he was wearing his glasses, sending Ink’s soul fluttering. He had his arm stretched out towards Ink, a single red rose in his grasp.

“F-For you…” Error grumbled, averting his eyes. His fidgeting got worse the longer Ink stared.

“You’re wearing your glasses.” Ink blurted. Error’s already blue cheekbones brightened.

“Y-Yeah… I…” Error started. _I want to see every moment._ He thought, but decided it was better not to say that. Ink hadn’t even acknowledged his stupid rose. He was an idiot for following Cross’s advice.   

“I don’t see very well at night.” While this was true, it wasn’t the truth.

“Oh.” Ink simply replied. He finally focused his attention on the rose that Error was still holding out towards him. “This is for me?”

“Y-yeah…” Error frowned. “You don’t have to take it.” He started to withdraw his hand.

Ink quickly shot his hand out and took the rose.

“Thanks, Error.” He grinned, holding the rose close to his chest. “Why though?” He asked. He shouldn’t have pressed it. Error already looked out of his element and now he looked downright uncomfortable.

“Uh…” Error scratched the back of his skull.

“Is this a date?” Ink couldn’t help himself. Error signs filled the other’s eyes. Ink tried not to panic.

“I-I want it to be one!” The artist quickly amended. It was still a few seconds before Error returned to normal.

“R-really?” Error asked. Ink blushed and nodded.

“Y-yeah… I kind of blurted it out yesterday, didn’t I?” He asked. That got a laugh out of his companion.

“You kind of did.”

“Let me put this up and then we can go.” Ink chirped happily. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit short, but I had to basically split this chapter to start on the next one or else it was going to be too long for my tastes. So, good news, the next chapter is already in progress. :) I also actually edited this chapter. Two wins for the day.


	7. I Really Like You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ink get the perfect ending to his date.

After a bit of awkwardness of the very impromptu way of beginning a first date that they both had, ironically, prepared and dressed for, they settled back into the comfortable conversation that they were used to when they were together. Between them was an unseen, electric excitement that seemed to buzz between the two of them as they walked to the subway station.

Ink wanted to reach out, hold Error’s hand, but he restrained himself. He knew Error wasn’t the best about touching, though Chara seemed to think it was mostly fine if he were to touch Error. He also didn’t know if Error would… want to. What if he wasn’t the kind of guy that liked PDA? Ink spaced out as they rode the subway.

Ink was startled out of his own mind as Error stretched his arm behind him, letting it settle on his shoulders. He looked to the other skeleton, but Error was looking away, a slight dusting of blue on his face. Ink smiled and leaned into him. They sat that way for the rest of their ride.

It had only been a week since they had met…

Because of those stupid cockroaches.

“Seen anymore creepy crawlies?” Ink asked, twisting slightly so that he could look at Error properly. He felt Error adjust his arm, but he didn’t take it away completely.

“Not yet. I’ll see one every now and then. Just promise not to come and try and save them again.” Error grimaced.

“Why not? Isn’t all life precious?” Ink laughed slightly.

“You were ready to kill them too! You just chickened out.” Error huffed.

“You got impatient and killed them yourself.” Ink pouted and crossed his arms.

“If I would have waited any longer, Gyftmas would’ve come and gone.” Error chided. He looked up. “This is our stop.”

He stood, holding onto one of the straps hanging from the railing and held out a hand, helping Ink up. Ink clung to his hand and didn’t let go once he was standing. Error fidgeted at first, but let their hands drop together.

They left the train and headed up the stairs before Ink thought to ask where they were going.

“Where are we?” He asked. It was hard to keep up with Error while they exited the station because of the amount of people and monsters that were still going back and forth. It was Saturday in a big city, but Ink had thought that it would at least have slowed down a bit.

“This is Waterfall Village. It’s a pretty cool part of the city. You’ll see what I mean soon.” Error gripped his hand almost to the point that it hurt, but he was trying not to lose Ink in the crowd.

When they were out of the stairwell, Error’s grip relaxed but he kept holding Ink’s hand. For once, it was a continuous touch he didn’t mind. There was an urge to pull away, but this time it was easy to fight down. With Ink, it was getting easier.

The streets were also busy, but at least above ground Ink could breathe. They walked side by side, close enough that their shoulders brushed with every step. Ink almost forgot that he was supposed to be collecting sketches of his date, not romancing him the entire night. Almost.

“This way.” Error said, gently pulling him into an open parking lot.

Food trucks littered the parking lot and people were milling around. Normal smells of urban fast food were mingled with more exotic flavors such as saffron and fennel. Ink sniffed the air, trying to take it all in. He couldn’t pinpoint any specific piece of food, but he could tell that anything he might ever want was being served.

“What’s this?” He asked, looking up at Error.

“Dinner.” Error answered. He looked down and saw the confusion on Ink’s face. “This isn’t a spot I had in mind for your sketches. But…” He paused. “It can’t exactly be a date without dinner, right?” 

Ink smiled and nodded.

“I guess… But most people want to dine at an actual restaurant. Not outdoor… trucks.” He teased. Error stiffened, then relaxed when he realized Ink was joking.

“If you want, there’s a good dumpster outside an Italian place around here. We can go eat out of that.” He suggested. Ink wrinkled his nose.

“No thanks. Unless we were romantically eating spaghetti together.”

“We’re not dogs and this isn’t a movie.”

“Fair.”

Error pulled him in the crowd, keeping him close as they walked the line of trucks.

“See anything you want?” He asked.

Ink considered each truck that they passed. There was Italian, though Error had ruined his appetite for the cuisine, Mexican, French, Mediterranean, Asian Fusion, Korean barbeque, and…

“Hotdogs.” Ink said decisively.

“You want… a hotdog?” Error asked, deadpan. Ink blinked up at him.

“What? What’s wrong with hotdogs?” He frowned. Error just shook his head and laughed.

“Nothing… You’re unpredictable, you know?” Error moved so that they were in line.

“What does that mean?” The artist asked.

“Means I never know what you’re going to say. It’s good. I don’t usually get surprised by people.” Error shrugged. “I thought you might choose something peculiar. But you picked a hotdog. Something you can get on any street corner here.”

Ink blushed, taking it as a compliment. Error gently squeezed his hand.

“What do you want? My treat.” Error smiled slightly down at him. Ink perked up at the sight. 

“A brat!”

 

* * *

 

After eating a thick bratwurst and Error having to clean mustard off of his face, Ink demanded ice cream as the finishing touch. He wasn’t surprised when Error chose chocolate soft serve, but he was surprised when he asked for sprinkles on top.

“So, you ARE a twelve-year-old!” Ink gasped.

“Because I got sprinkles? You got sprinkles, chocolate chips, and gummy bears. I guess that makes you five.” Error teased before sticking out his…

“Tongues!” Ink cried as Error licked the side of his cone, catching some melting ice cream before it landed on his hand.

“Ah, shit.” Error frowned, pulling back from his cone. “You saw them.”

“Were you hiding them?” Ink had to resist the urge to lean in and inspect his date’s multiple blue tongues.

“It’s not exactly something I like having.” Error grimaced. He had let his guard down for one second. Now Ink was going to think he was gross. What kind of monster had multiple tongues?

“It’s cool.” Ink smiled, but that only made Error frown.

“You’re just saying that.” He huffed.

Now Ink frowned.

“I am not!” Ink grumbled. “From the moment I saw you, I thought you were the most interesting-looking creature I had ever seen. I was so…” He tried to find the right word. “Amazed. I like everything about the way you look, Error. Even those tongues. It just makes you more… cool.”

Error let a small smile creep onto his face.

“Again, you surprise me.” He laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his skull. “I guess I shouldn’t be at this point.” He sighed.

“Thanks, Ink.” 

“Now lean against that railing so I can draw you while you eat.”

 

* * *

 

 After Ink had finished his preliminary sketch that he had titled in his head “Cool Dude Eats Ice Cream”, and after Error had gotten him another cone because he had forgotten his while he had been drawing, they connected hands once more and Error led him to their next destination.

“Why is this place called Waterfall Village? I haven’t seen one waterfall.” Ink looked around. There seemed to be more people on the streets than there had been when they left the subway station.

“That’s our last stop.” Error shrugged. He wasn’t going to ruin the surprise that was waiting for Ink at the park.

Ink grumbled something under his breath. He enjoyed surprises, but this felt more like waiting. And he wasn’t very patient.

They stopped outside of a tall skyscraper. It looked like it hosted business firms. Ink frowned.

“What’s this? It looks boring.” He shifted slightly. This wasn’t really a good place to draw. Error wasn’t an artist, so perhaps that was to blame.

“It’s the Mettaton State Building.” Error was going to continue when Ink cut him off.

“The same guy in The Legend of Mettaton?” His eyes were changing rapidly. Nothing was really adding up.

“…” Error was silent for a moment. “You’ve lived near the city your whole life, right?”

“Yeah?” Ink didn’t see his point.

“Mettaton is basically the patron saint of New Home City. He has his hands in everything. The video game was produced by him, so he inserted himself into the game. He runs this tower.” Error explained, gently leading Ink into the building.

“So… you brought me here because I kind of enjoyed that video game?” Ink liked that Error thought of him, but he still didn’t really want to be there. He looked around the lobby. There were pictures of the robot on as many surfaces as they could be without coming off as tacky. Ink did have to admit, the character in the game really did look like him.

“No…” Error grumbled. “Just be patient for like, five minutes.” He led the artist to an elevator.

“Why is this place open past business hours? And where are we going?” Ink was getting fidgety. “And how come we can just walk in here and use the elevators?”

“You missed the sign…” Error sighed as they entered the elevator. He pressed the button for the top floor.

“What sign?” Ink blinked. Error looked at him and laughed.

“Your eyes…” Error laughed again.

“What? I know they switch. Didn’t you notice them before?” Ink tilted his head.

“Of course! But they’ve been stuck on a heart and a little purple diamond since we came in.” Error laughed again.

“Wha?” Ink blinked rapidly, feeling them change. Error laughed again. “What now?!”

“They didn’t change because you were so distracted… Or, I guess that’s why. Is it really that irritating to you to not know why we’re here?”

“A bit…” Ink grumbled into his scarf. “How long is this elevator ride?”

“Look at the buttons.”

Ink turned his attention to the buttons on the wall, the light shining behind the floors that they passed.

“That’s a lot of floors.” He smiled nervously.

“Yep.”

“We’re going all the way up?”

“Yep.”

Ink fell into silence, shifting on his feet again. He couldn’t think of any reason to go to the top floor of a business building.

Finally, the elevator reached its destination and the doors opened. Ink gasped. The top floor was circular with no walls, only giant windows facing the outside. The only break in them was the row of elevators. There were people milling about, looking through the windows at the city below.

Ink’s eyes turned to stars and Error blushed on cue.

“This is amazing, Error!” Ink cried happily. He tugged on the other’s hand, dragging him over to one of the giant windows. He put his hands on the glass, leaning in. “The view is so beautiful.” He whispered.

“Yeah, I know.” Error smiled, watching Ink. He shoved his hands in his pockets, a bit glad for the break in touching. “Don’t look down.”

Ink did the opposite of what he had been told and immediately looked down.

“Ah!” He cried and jumped back as Error laughed.

“I told you not to, doofus.” Error laughed again.

“Okay, I get it, I should trust you.” Ink crossed his arms. “This isn’t really good for drawing though…”

“You can enjoy it despite that, right?” Error leaned against the railing. Ink smiled and nodded.

“I almost forgot this was supposed to double as a date.” He said cheerily, not missing the blue that spread over Error’s cheekbones. He decided to press his luck. “It’s pretty romantic up here. Was that part of your plan to get me to fall for you? Take me up here and woo me?”

Error looked away, his face about as heated as it could get.

“N-no… Not exactly… I thought you might like it because of the view… I didn’t know it was a bad drawing spot…” He shifted uneasily. Ink laughed.

“I DO like it.” Ink said and grabbed Error’s arm and pulled him away from the rail, dragging him into a lap around the room. They walked in a comfortable silence before Ink piped up again.

“So, where’s the waterfall?” 

“The waterfall?” Error paused, then laughed. “This isn’t the last place we’re going.”

 

* * *

 

After getting their fair share of the observation deck, Error had led them out of the building and towards the Waterfall Village Park, the biggest park in the entire country. Not only was it lively during the day, but it was a boon for musicians and performers at night. Not to mention the echo flowers.

He enjoyed having Ink cling to his arm. Chara used to do the same thing, but it hadn’t felt like this. He mostly felt annoyed when she did it. He didn’t mind Ink hanging on him at any opportunity. With Ink, it was comfortable. He didn’t feel anxious. At least, he hadn’t yet. And that was more than he could have hoped for.

“A park?” Ink asked as they came up to the entrance.

“Benches and shit. That’s good for drawing, right?” Error asked, trying to hide his excitement. Ink wouldn’t see the true fun that was available until they were inside.

“You’re right. But after the Mettaton Building, I’m a little disappointed.” Ink sighed sadly.

“Just come on. Next time you can plan the date.” Error huffed.

“Oh? You’re assuming there’s going to be a second one?” Ink’s fingers tightened on Error’s arm. He was expecting to see those error signs fill his date’s eyes, but surprisingly Error just laughed.

“If you ask me nicely.” Error teased, still pulling Ink along. It was Ink’s turn to be embarrassed. He laughed awkwardly.

“I-I’ll think about it.” He said. Error was putting the ball in his court. He really wanted to ask Error right then for a second date, but something was holding him back. He decided he just needed to see how the date ended.

Error pulled him along a path and after what seemed like decades of walking, a distant sound beginning to pick up.

“Music?” Ink asked, looking around for the source.

“Not so boring now, huh?” Error asked as they rounded a corner.

Before them was an open area with a large fountain in the middle surrounded by benches and vegetation. People were loitering around, sitting on almost any surface that wasn’t a bench. A mixture of monsters and humans were standing near the fountain, playing music. People were throwing coins into a hat and moving into a small crowd that was dancing in front of them.

“Ooh.” Ink whispered as he looked at the crowd. He wondered if he could get Error to dance with him, but he needed to sketch him before they did anything. “Error, go lean again the fountain!” He commanded, pointing the exact spot he wanted him.

Error complied easily, trotting over to the fountain and leaned against it.

“Like this?” He called.

“Put your leg out a little… Yeah, perfect!” Ink chirped and pulled out his sketchbook.

He lost himself in the sketch, almost forgetting that he was in public. All that mattered was Error, and the fountain behind him. He just needed to get the major details down. He would have to finish it another day, but he still wanted to get enough details that he would remember how everything was. He looked up, studying a particular detail on the fountain when he noticed a brightly dressed skeleton just on the other side, his head swerving slightly to look between him and Error. He was wearing sunglasses, at night, that read ‘YOLO’ in bright, neon colors. When he saw that Ink was looking at him, he gave him a grin, one golden tooth glinting in a street lamp, and gave him finger guns before walking away.

“Ink?” Error asked, noticing that Ink had become distracted.

The artist blinked and looked back to him.

“Sorry, I saw something weird.” He said and looked back to his sketch. Without realizing it, he had furthered the sketch more than he had wanted to. He smiled. “I’m done, anyway!” He began tucking his things back into his bag.

Error walked back to him.

“You’re done?” He asked.

“As done as I want to be for now.” Ink nodded to himself. “Can we listen to the band?” He asked, a plan beginning to take shape.

“Sure.” Error shrugged and offered his arm to Ink, who gratefully accepted. Ink thought they were starting to act like a real couple.

They went to the crowd and stood on the fringe, watching the other happy couples and drunken teenagers dancing. Ink began to sway slightly with the music, trying to tease Error into moving with him. But the grad student remained immobile, not quite getting the hint. Ink frowned, thinking.

The band picked a quick tune, changing the tempo and mood of the crowd. Ink took his chance.

“C’mon!” He cried, pulling Error into the fray. He let go of him and began moving to the beat. “Error, you gotta dance with me!”

“I don’t ‘gotta’ do anything.” Error growled, clearly out of his element. Ink just laughed and grabbed his hands, forcing him to move. Error was stiff and fighting him with every move.

“Error… please.” Ink begged. “Why don’t you want to dance?”

“I look stupid dancing.” Error didn’t budge.

“Don’t focus on you, focus on me, then. Please? It’ll make me happy.” Ink fluttered his eyes, though the effect wasn’t quite the same as it would have been as someone who had eyelashes. Error still blushed.

He began moving with Ink, trying not to focus too much on himself. After a few measures, he was able to relax more. Ink took the lead, spinning them around. He looked so happy that Error smiled along with him, even laughing. Dancing was still foreign to him, but it wasn’t so bad when he was doing it with Ink. Soon enough, all he could focus on was Ink. The rest of the world faded away, and he was grinning brightly for the first time in a long time.

Error’s grin took Ink by surprise, but it melted his heart. He had never seen Error look so happy. He hadn’t even been sure if Error _could_ feelthat happy. But now he was seeing it, and it was directed at him. He grinned in return.

The song ended too quickly, and that was Error’s sign to stop dancing. His grin was still in place, and Ink nearly swooned. That grin, with those glasses, aimed at him. It was enough to make anyone faint. Ink wasn’t quite that dramatic though.

“Do you want to see the waterfall?” Error asked, stretching out his hand to Ink.

The artist grinned and nodded. 

“Yeah!”

 

* * *

 

Ink stilled when he caught sight of the waterfall. It was obviously manmade just for the park, and while it was gorgeous, the rest of the scenery is what really shocked him. Surrounding the waterfall and small pond beneath it were blue flowers. They glowed in the dark and provided enough light that no lamps were needed. People, mostly couples, sat amongst the flowers, speaking quietly to one another. It was almost like a sacred contract that no one talk loudly enough to disturb anyone else. It was a quiet haven in the middle of a bustling city.

“It’s beautiful.” Ink whispered. Error smiled at him gently.

“Come on.” He said quietly and led Ink to a small patch that was unoccupied. They sat down, the flowers hovering just above their heads. The flowers created an even more intimate environment, as if they were encasing the couple.

“These are echo flowers.” Error explained. “They repeat what you say to them.”

He pulled one of the flowers towards him and whispered into it, then handed it to Ink. Ink turned his head into the petals, trying to listen.

_You look really nice tonight._ The flower whispered to him. Ink laughed softly and told the flower his secret, passing it to Error when he was done.

_Thanks. You do too. I really, really like you in your glasses._

They started playing a game of passing the flower back and forth, whispering to each other.

_You look cute when you draw._

_I really thought you were going to murder someone when we met._

_If cockroaches count, then I’m a mass murderer._

_I moved out here to get away from my ex. Is that bad?_

_No. I did the same thing._

_Will you go on a second date with me?_

_Just tell me when._

_It won’t be as good as this._

_If I’m with you, it’ll be perfect._

When they had tired of their game and when Ink began yawning, they decided to go home. Neither truly wanted to, but it was late, even for young adults. They were quiet most of the ride home, but they were always touching. They held hands on the subway, Ink leaning his head onto Error’s shoulder.

Anxiety… or rather, anticipation, began building in Ink’s chest cavity as they walked to their apartment building. They would get to their doors and then…

They would part ways.

But Ink was hoping for that perfect ending to a perfect night.

He clung to Error’s arm, his anxiety rising. He felt like he was going to throw up. Error let them into the building, and they started up the stairs. He needed something to distract himself from his racing soul.

“What are you doing tomorrow?” He asked.

“You want to go on the date tomorrow?” Error looked at him curiously.

“N-no! I still have to plan it. I was just curious.” Ink laughed nervously.

“I usually work on homework on Sundays.” Error shrugged. “Not very exciting.”

“I-I see…” Ink nodded to himself. 

They were quiet until they reached Ink’s door. He reluctantly dropped his hand from Error’s arm. He smiled.

“Thanks for tonight, Error. I had a lot of fun.” He couldn’t help the sadness that tinged his voice. He didn’t want the night to end. He felt silly, like he was back in high school. He looked up at his date, his eyes flashing into heart.

Error paused, looking into Ink’s eyes. He blushed, watching the hearts appear. They stayed, and it unnerved Error. He was grateful, but he hadn’t expected that _he,_ of all people, who get that kind of reaction out of Ink. He was the weirdest skeleton monster out there. (Fresh was a close second.) And Ink? He was wonderful. Beautiful, talented, and personable. He didn’t feel like he deserved Ink’s affection. But he had it.

“I-I did too, Ink.” He smiled awkwardly. He looked into Ink’s eyelights again. He was going to do it. He was going to go for the goodnight kiss. He steeled himself and began to lean in.

Ink quickly raised his head to meet him, their mouths pressing together. A few seconds ticked by, neither wanting the kiss to end. Error was the first to move. He began to pull back, but Ink wrapped his arms around Error’s neck, pulling him in for a second round.

This time, the kiss electrified them. Ink opened his mouth, initiating a deeper kiss. Error was slower to respond, embarrassed again by his tongues, but Ink was needy and pressed into him, begging for more. Finally, Error slid his tongues into Ink’s mouth. Ink shuddered at the new feeling, and before Error could pull away, mistaking his pleasure for disgust, Ink grunted in approval.

Ink had no idea how long they stayed like that. Error pressed him against door, arms bracing himself on either side of the artist’s head. He was closed in, completely surrounded by Error. But all good things come to an end and they separated, both panting though they had no need to breathe.

They stared at each other, cheeks hot. Error grinned for the second time that night and Ink felt like he was going to really throw up now. He wanted to go in for another kiss, but the look Error was giving him told him their kissing was over for the night.

“Goodnight, Ink.” Error whispered, leaning in and kissing him on the forehead before completely pulling away.

“Goodnight, Error.” Ink whispered breathlessly, watching as his neighbor walked to his door.

Error was still wearing that dopey smile as he waved to Ink and opened his door and slipped inside.

Ink finally let himself into his apartment, falling face first onto his bed.

He liked Error. He liked him a lot.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have another chapter. I edited this one too. By the amount of typos, I should really be doing that more often.


	8. Becoming Official

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fresh pays his brother a visit and Ink learns Error's darkest secret.

Error awoke the next morning to incessant knocking on his door.

His first instinct was to completely ignore it, turn over, and go back to sleep. His second instinct was to fly to the door because it might have been Ink. But then he heard it.

The distinctive staccato rhythm to the theme song to The Fresh Prince of Hotland.

His eyes shot open, a scowl already on his face. There were a few things he didn’t want to deal with in the morning, and at the top of that list was what was on the other side of that door. But the knocking continued, and he knew for a fact that if he didn’t answer it soon the monster would enter anyway.

He pulled himself out of bed, slipped on his old pair of black slippers, and went to the door. He unlocked it and opened it a crack, squinting through.

“What the heck do you want?” He growled.

“Das not any way ta greet ya little bro.”

“How did you get in the building?”

“I have ma ways. Ya gonna lemme in?”

“No. What do you want?”

“I came ta talk ta ya ‘bout that guy ya were with last night.”

That stopped Error. This abomination had seen him out with Ink the night before? He was going to have to let him in. Otherwise he’d tell Geno. And then Geno would come over too. He sighed dramatically.

“Okay, fine.” He grumbled and opened the door, making way for the 90s trash he called his brother.

Fresh walked into his apartment, looking around.

“Wow. Ya place is just as clean as ya room back home.” He grinned at his older brother.

Error grumbled something under his breath and closed the door.

“Just sit down. What do you really want?” He asked. Fresh sat on the couch and Error made it a point to sit on the bed, away from him.

“I’m just interested in ma big bro’s life.” Fresh shrugged. He leaned his skateboard against the coffee table and Error flinched.

“Sorry, brah. Forgot ya don’t like dirty things touchin’ tha furniture.” Fresh laughed and set the skateboard on the floor.   

“What do you want to know?” Error asked, sighing. He was already tired of this conversation.

“Who was dat?” Fresh tilted his head. His glasses always unnerved Error. The text on them would sometimes change, depending on Fresh’s mood. Error knew that monster magic was specific to the monster, but he never expected it to manifest for his brother in the form of text-changing sunglasses.

“Who was what?” Error asked, crossing his arms. From the light in the room it was around noon, but he still felt tired. He _had_ been up late the night before.

“Dat guy drawin’ ya at the park.” Fresh kept his grin stable. It was rare to catch him not smiling.

“…” Error frowned. So, Fresh had seen him and Ink. “That was Ink, my neighbor.”

“Neighbor? Here?” Fresh gestured to the floor. Error nodded. “You made a new friend. I’m happy for ya, broski.”

“Thanks… Fresh.”

“He’s not just a friend though, ya?” Fresh tilted his head again. Error growled slightly.

“That was our first date.” He looked away, embarrassed.

“Dat’s cool.” Fresh nodded.

“Couldn’t you have just called me instead of coming all the way here?” Error huffed.

“Ya wouldn’t answer if I tried ta.” His brother shrugged.

“Is that all you wanted?”

“Nah. Geno misses ya. Ya should have him come over sometime. He could use someone ta talk to. He’s got a lot of problems at work.”

“Problems? Like what?” Error was curious.

“One of dem higher ups is always on his back. Den, he’s got some guy from tha morgue that won’t leave ‘im alone. He ain’t got many friends here, an’ ya don’t try to see ‘im.”

Error sighed, for once feeling bad about not spending much time with Geno. Geno was the one who had helped him most through his haphephobia. He knew he would be thrilled to learn that Error had met someone he could stand to touch. He made his mind up to call him later.

“Alright… I’ll call him. I guess it’s not easy being a resident doctor.” Error rubbed the side of his skull.

“Nah, it ain’t easy at all!” Fresh hopped up and grabbed his skateboard. “Dat’s all I wanted to say. If ya get serious with ya neighbor, ya should let us meet ‘im.”

“Yeah, yeah, maybe when heck freezes over.” Error grumbled and stood, going to the door and opening it for his brother.

“Bye broski!” Fresh gave him a slight wave. “Love ya!”

“Yeah.” Error grumbled and shut the door. He sighed. He hadn’t realized Geno was having such a hard time in the city. He should have been in contact more with him. Fresh always just showed up, so he didn’t have to worry about seeing him. Geno was more reserved. He didn’t want to “bother” Error. So, he stayed silent.

There was knocking at the door, once again to the tune of The Fresh Prince of Hotland.

“What?!” Error gasped, exasperated, as he opened the door.

Fresh grinned down at him.

“Ya gotta say it back.”

“Say what?”

“Ya gotta say ya love me when I say it to ya.”

“No.”

“Ya gotta. Those are tha orders.”

“Heck no.” Error frowned at his forced censor. Another quirk of Fresh’s magic.

“I’m not gonna leave till ya say it back.” Fresh continued to grin.

Error groaned and finally relented.

“Love you.”

“Love ya too, Error.” Fresh gently patted his shoulder, watching Error blush. It had been years since they had finally got on good terms, but Error still had to be prompted to talk like a normal sibling to him. He was glad, though.

Fresh turned and headed for the stairs. He heard the door slam behind him. He spotted the artist he had seen the night before watching them from the garbage chute. He grinned and gave him another pair of finger guns, but didn’t stop to talk to him. He’d respect Error’s wish of waiting to be introduced and not forcing himself onto the guy. But he seemed rad enough.

 

* * *

 

“Blue, it was so great!” Ink sighed into the phone. He had just got back from taking out the trash and seeing that weird guy again, only this time he came out of Error’s apartment and forced Error to say, ‘I love you.’ But he promptly forgot all of that when he saw he had a missed call from his friend.

“Did you get a lot of good drawings?” Blue asked, oblivious to the fact that the outing the night before had turned into something more.

“Yeah! But more importantly, he took me to all the romantic spots in Waterfall…” Ink gently cupped one of his cheeks as he reminisced.

“Did he take you to the park?”

“Yes! It was so beautiful, Blue! We whispered back and forth through the flowers…”

“It sounds like he likes you.” Blue grinned through the phone.

“I hope so! He kissed me at the end of night… And we’re going on a second date!” Ink sighed into the phone.

“Second date? So yesterday really was a date?!”

“Oh, yeah! It turned into one when he picked me up and gave me a rose.” Ink smiled happily. He looked to his windowsill where the rose lay. He was hoping it would dry out so he could keep it.

“He’s romantic, then.” Blue laughed. “I want to meet him. Dream got to meet him… I guess that wasn’t planned though.”

Ink laughed as well.

“If we start dating, you’ll definitely meet him. I want him to be close to both of you!” Ink hummed softly. Surely the awkwardness between him and Dream would end soon, and then they could go back to being best friends. 

“That’s great! If you like him, I’m sure he’s a great guy!”

“Of course!” Ink chirped. “But that reminds me… I need your help.”

“I’m all ears.”

“I’m in charge of the second date. But I don’t know what to do. I can’t compete with last night!”

“Calm down. If he likes you, he probably doesn’t care as long as you put thought into it! What do you think he’d like to do?”

Ink thought for a moment.

“I have no idea. He’s kind of a homebody. He just goes to school and comes home. Friday, he had Cross over, but I’m not entirely sure that was his idea…” Ink frowned.

“Oh! I know! Why don’t you cook for him? You don’t have to go anywhere, and they always say the fastest way to a man’s heart is through his stomach!”

“Sounds good! There’s only one problem.”

“Yeah?”

“I can’t cook.”

“It’s time you learned! I, the magnificent Blue, shall teach you! I’ll come over Tuesday night and teach you how to cook a romantic dinner for two! It’ll be great!” Blue began to laugh his signature cackle of ‘mweh heh heh heh.’

Ink grinned.

“Great! I have to go tell Error that our next date is a home cooked meal!” He bounced up from his bed. Then he paused. “Blue, do you think I’d seem too eager if I went over to his place today? I’ve kind of… been there every day this week. Do you think it’s okay?”

Blue laughed.

“It’d be weird if you didn’t go over at this point!”

“Thanks, Blue! I gotta go now.” Ink smiled into the phone.

“Okay, take care!”

Ink slipped the phone into his pocket. Yes, he was going to go straight over to Error’s place and tell him their second date was on. He started to head for the door and paused again.

But who was that guy? What if Error was in some kind of relationship with him? He did say that he loved him, even though it seemed a bit forced. Ink shook his head. Error didn’t seem like the kind of guy to date two people at once. He didn’t seem like the kind of monster who had the patience for it, if Ink was being honest. With a nod, he charged out his door and the few feet to Error’s door and knocked.

“Stars, what is it now?” He heard Error grumble from behind the door. Ink worried for a split second that maybe he shouldn’t have come. But then Error opened the door and his soul was fluttering in his ribcage.

Error’s frown softened when he saw who it was.

“Oh, hey Ink.” He said, and Ink beamed up at him. The artist thought about kissing him the night before and he almost melted onto the floor. He wanted Error to do it again. To just lean down and…

“Ink?” Error looked concerned. Ink blinked and mentally slapped himself. He had gotten lost in his daydream.

“Sorry! I came to tell you that I have the perfect second date planned. What are you doing Friday?” He asked as he watched Error’s entire visage soften into a very, very, small smile.

“For you? I’m free.” Error smirked slightly and leaned against the doorframe.

“Perfect!” Ink grinned and nodded to himself.

“What are we going to do?” Error asked.

“It’s a surprise!” Ink assured quickly. “Just come to my place at seven.”

“Alright. It’s a date.” Error smiled.

“Great!” Ink grinned. He lingered at the door, shifting slightly.

“You want to come in, don’t you?” Error asked. Ink smiled sheepishly.

“If I could?”

Error sighed dramatically.

“I guess. I’m catching up on my stories.” Error shrugged.

“Stories?” Ink asked. Error laughed and shook his head.

“Just come in. It’s time you knew my dirtiest, darkest secret.”

Ink blinked and walked into the small studio. The apartment was immaculate as always, though it looked like Error had made himself popcorn and was watching something on his tv. The door shut behind him.

“What’s your dirtiest secret?” Ink asked as he sat down. Error sighed.

“You’re very impatient.” The taller skeleton down next to him, instinctively putting his arm around Ink’s shoulders. Ink could have fainted.

“I am!” Ink huffed.

Error pressed play on the remote and his show started. Ink blinked at the screen, then let out a small laugh.

“Under…novela?” Ink asked, trying to contain his laughter. He wouldn’t have thought Error would be one to watch a telenovela.

“Yep… Been watching it since I was a kid. I can’t help it. I’m hooked!” Error laughed with him. “I told you, it’s my deepest, dirtiest secret.”

Ink laughed again.

“You’re surprising, you know that?” Ink smiled. He wanted to lean into Error… No, he wanted to curl into him.

“I’m not really, but thanks, I guess?” Error shrugged and looked to the screen.

They sat in silence for a while as they watched the drama unfolding on screen. Finally, Ink asked his burning question.

“Who was that guy that was here today?”

Error twitched. He paused the tv.

“What did he look like?” He asked.

“There was more than one person here today?” Ink blinked.

“No… I guess you caught me. That my brother.”

Ink blinked rapidly, his eye lights changing as quickly as they could.

“Your brother? That was your brother?” He gasped.

“Yeah… Wish it wasn’t, but what can you do?” Error huffed.

“He’s… He’s a giant!” Ink balked.

“Yeah… he’s pretty tall.” Error laughed slightly. “Wait till you see his eyebrows.”

“That’s so cool! I always wanted siblings!” Ink said excitedly.

“Yeah? You can have him. I have another one so please, take Fresh.”

“You have another brother?” Ink was getting more and more excited by the second.

“Yeah… He’s the oldest. Geno. He’s working at one of the local hospitals for his residency. I came to school here first, then Geno got his placement here. Fresh just kind of… followed us.” Error sighed, once again feeling guilty that he hadn’t yet called his older brother.

“Awww.” Ink cooed. “You’re the middle child. Poor thing.” He teased.

Error ‘hmph’d.

“I turned out just fine.”

“I guess so… Is Geno as tall as Fresh?”

“You’re really obsessed with that, aren’t you? No, he’s about my height.”

“Still taller than me…” Ink sighed sadly before reaching into Error’s bowl and plucking out a piece of popcorn. “It’s a little burnt.”

“Then don’t eat it.” Error huffed as Ink laughed.

“Error?” He asked.

“Yeah?”

“Can I… Can I sit in your lap?” He asked with a blush.

Error was quiet for a moment.

“That must be really embarrassing for you to ask.” Error teased. Ink pouted.

“Can I or not?” He frowned.

“Hm, let me think…” Error looked thoughtful for a moment. “Yeah, come over here.”

Ink grinned happily and moved onto his neighbor’s lap, settling into a comfy position.

“Perfect…” He sighed happily.

“If my legs fall asleep, you gotta go.” Error teased. 

“No!” Ink whined.

 

* * *

 

 Their tv watching quickly evolved into a full blown make out session. Ink took the blame, since he had instigated it by not only sitting on Error, but he also might have tugged on Error’s collar until he got what he wanted. And every time Error even thought about separating, he brought him back in. He ended up being pinned to the couch with Error hovering over him from his position between the artist’s legs. But Ink didn’t mind. In fact, he relished in it.

“Ink…” Error whispered softly as he pulled away an inch, looking into Ink’s changing eyes.

“Yeah?” Ink breathlessly.

“What do you want?” Error asked, his stare intense. Ink flushed.

“I…I don’t…” Ink began to stutter. He hadn’t really been thinking when he instigated their frantic kissing. He didn’t know if was ready to take it to the next level… Error laughed softly.

“Not that.” Error smiled at him. “Let me tell you what I want, first.”

Ink swallowed, soul hammering. He was nervous. What did Error really want?

“Ink, I really like you. I’ve never… liked someone in the way that I do with you. I’m going to be honest, Ink.” Error paused. “I want to be your boyfriend.”

Ink felt his soul jump into his throat. He was stunned and his mind went blank. He blinked rapidly.

“I… I…” He began to stutter, not sure how to respond to Error’s gentle words.

“You don’t have to answer…” Error said, a bit awkwardly. Perhaps he shouldn’t have been so forward. They really had only just had their first date. But it felt like they had been together for so much longer. Ink was at his place constantly. They had shared more intimate moments than not.

“I-I…” Ink continued. “I…Iwantobeyourboyfriendtoo!” He spat out, trying to get the words out before his anxiety could swallow them.

Error blinked down at him.

“What?” Ink asked. “You said it first!”

Error began to laugh.

“What’s so funny?!” Ink cried, gently gripping the front of Error’s shirt.

“N-nothing…” Error swallowed his laughter. “I’m just… really happy.”

Error bent down and gave Ink a gentle peck.

“You look so cute… _my boyfriend…_ ” Error smiled at him. Ink’s entire face lit up in a rainbow. 

“Stop… you’re embarrassing me…” Ink squirmed slightly. “I can’t believe my boyfriend is so sappy…”

Error let out another laugh and kissed Ink once more

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing Fresh's dialogue was weird, but fun! I hope you liked his true entrance into the story!


	9. Blackbird

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Error finally visits Geno and Ink is himself.

When Blue opened the front door of his and Papyrus’s apartment late Sunday night, he wasn’t expecting Dream, and he certainly wasn’t expecting him in the state he was in.

It looked like Dream had been crying. Not just for hours, but for days. Blue quickly ushered him inside and went to make him a warm cup of tea before Dream could even explain himself. When he turned around to put the warm mug in front of his friend, Dream was crying again, staring down at his phone.

“Okay,” Blue paused, watching the other skeleton from across the kitchen table. “What’s wrong?”

“He’s in a relationship!” Dream choked out, finally looking up at Blue. “It’s UnderNet official!” He pointed to his phone.

Blue blinked.

“Who? What?”

“Ink!” Dream cried out. “He changed his relationship status on UnderNet! It has to be with Error!”

“…” Blue frowned, trying to think quickly. He hadn’t checked UnderNet all day. And from his previous stalking, this Error fellow didn’t have a profile. Yet, there was no one else Ink would be in a relationship with, and he wasn’t the kind of person to change his status for a joke. He had to tread carefully with Dream. He didn’t want to exasperate the situation.

“Dream…” He started, gently touching his friend’s shoulder. “I know this is hard for you but-”

“But I’m the one who ended it.” The yellow-eyed skeleton spat, frowning into his untouched mug of tea. Blue had even put it in his favorite one; the one shaped like a dog.

“Not what I was going to say. That’s true, you did break up with him, but Ink deserves to be happy just as much as you do.” Blue tried to smile but Dream just wilted again.

“I really made him that miserable, huh?” Dream looked down sadly at his tea once more.

“You didn’t!” Blue snapped, nearly standing up. Dream blinked at him. “Dream, you keep putting yourself down about the break up, like it was your fault or something. Sometimes, relationships don’t work out. And that’s okay! But you have to let him move on.

Two giant alligator tears ran down Dream’s cheeks.

“I just… the way he was looking at him… He never looked at me like that…” Finally, Dream took a timid sip from his mug. He seemed to soften when he saw the dog’s face.

“Ink told you he only loved you as a friend. The way he looks at Error is different from you because of that. I know you know that, but I think you’re having a hard time coming to terms with it now that it’s in front of you.” Blue continued.

Dream nodded pitifully, now taking a gulp of his drink.

“It was… hard to watch.” He admitted. “I just wish…”

“You wish you hadn’t broken up? You were miserable, Dream. You haven’t been yourself in a very long time.”

“I know… I held on for too long. Ink was never going to do it, so I finally did. But it’s so hard to get over it… I miss him… I still want to be in his life, but… it was so hard Friday… I don’t know if I can.” Dream shrank into himself.

“You can distance yourself for as long as you need to. You’re still a good friend, but you need to focus on yourself for now.” Blue gently rubbed his arm. He decided it was time to change the subject and help his friend forget about his melancholy for the moment. “Speaking of, how is it going with Cross?”

He watched in delight as a golden blush began to creep over his friend’s cheekbones.

“I-I… I don’t know? We’ve been texting… Kind of…” Dream shrugged slightly.

“Kind of?”

“He just… He keeps sending me silly memes. I… I don’t think he really knows how to flirt.” Dream laughed. Blue relaxed a bit as the momentary bomb of a crisis had been diffused.

“Do you laugh at them though?” He asked.

“Every single time.” Dream let out another small laugh. He opened his phone and pulled up one of the pictures that Cross had sent him. He held it out to Blue.

“Is that… a frog on a unicycle?” Blue asked.

“Yeah… I don’t understand it, really, but it was silly enough to make me laugh.”

Blue smiled at him.

“Would you kiss him again?” He asked slyly. Dream turned golden.

“I… I didn’t really… kiss him…” He looked away shyly.

“Okay… Would you kiss him?”

“Blue!” Dream squealed, burying his face in his hands. “I… I don’t know!”

Blue laughed.

“You have time to figure out! When are you going to see him again?”

“I… We’re going to get lunch together on campus sometime this week… It’s not really a date.”

“It’s kind of a date. Just not official!” Blue laughed.

“Since you’re so busy grilling me… Answer something for me.” Dream smiled.

“I’m an open book!”

“Wasn’t that guy that you had a crush on at your school before you moved to our junior high’s name was Error?”

“It was.” Blue nodded.

“Do you think… that could be him?” Dream tilted his head.

“That would be a really weird coincidence. I don’t think it’s probable, considering he lived a few states away.”

“Have you tried looking for him?”

“No, it doesn’t look like he has any social media. I haven’t been able to find much about him at all. Not even on a company’s staff webpage. He’s just been lost.” Blue shrugged sadly.

“I know you’re still hoping to meet him again. Anything is possible as long as you believe!” Dream cheered.

“Thanks Dream. He probably wouldn’t remember me anyway…”

“Don’t think like that!” Dream gripped his hands. “You just have to keep thinking about him and he’ll come to you. If it’s meant to be, you’ll meet him again someday.”

Blue laughed. 

“Thanks, Dream.”

 

* * *

 

The next day passed in a happy bliss for Ink.

As much as he had just wanted to stay the night with Error (a no-sex night), he had pulled himself out of his boyfriend’s arms and returned to his own apartment. There were lines that had to be crossed and he knew he wasn’t ready for them, even if it would have been a simple sleepover. He had, however, very much enjoyed Error laying on him after their make out session and falling asleep on his chest. He got to watch Error sleep, looking peaceful for once instead of his usual grumpy. He also may have taken a peek at the guy’s phone, only to find a picture of himself, drawing with his tongue peeking out, set as his background. Of course, he teased Error about it when he woke up.

_“What’s this picture?” He had asked, holding the phone up._

_Watching Error’s face brighten to an unseen hue was one of the highlights of Ink’s life up to this point._

_“I uh… Cross…” Error started to move off of Ink, but the artist quickly wrapped his legs around him, locking him in place for questioning._

_“Cross?” Ink frowned thoughtfully. “Oh, the camera noise.” He nodded to himself, remembering back to the other night. “But why is it your background?”_

_Error looked completely distraught, like a child caught trying to steal a cookie._

_“Uh… B-because…” He squirmed against Ink’s legs, trying to break free and put some distance between them so he could have some time to gather his thoughts. But Ink was relentless and wouldn’t let go. “Because you look adorable and I wanted to see it every time I look at my phone.”_

_It was Ink’s turn to blush and he finally unwrapped his legs and smiled softly down at the other._

_“That’s kind of sweet.” He admitted and gently kissed Error’s forehead._

And then on Monday, they walked to the subway station hand in hand, and Ink was thrilled. And when they parted, Error had kissed him softly on forehead and Ink was in a daze until he got to work, where he had to tell Chara every single detail. His boss squealed in delight and patted him on the back happily.

_“You did it, Ink! You cracked his cold, hard shell!” She cheered._

When he got home, he set his things down and grabbed his sketchbook, going over to Error’s. They didn’t do much, since Error was working on an important assignment for one of his classes, but just being in the same vicinity as him made Ink happy. He had some time to finish up one of the sketches he had gotten from the other night. Now he had his own little picture of his boyfriend. After Error was done, they ordered Thai and shared a few chaste kisses.

Tuesday started out much of the same, though on the way to the subway, Error told him he wouldn’t be home until late that night, since he was going to visit his brother at the hospital.

“Fresh is in the hospital?!” Ink had cried. “Was it the skateboard? It was that skateboard, wasn’t it? I’ll go with you!”

Error laughed.

“No, no… No one’s _in_ the hospital. I’m visiting Geno on his lunch break. He doesn’t have much time off, and when it is, it’s weird. So, I’m going to him.” Error explained.

“Oh. That’s good. Next time, phrase it differently.” Ink chastised as they arrived at his platform.

Error gently kissed his forehead again and Ink’s soul fluttered.

“For you, anything.” Error grinned and slipped away into the crowd, leaving Ink a bit dazed.

He tried not to compare Error and Dream, but he couldn’t help his mind wandering to the differences between the two. Dream was sweet and generally a happy person. He always tried to see the best in people and was the first person to apologize even if he hadn’t been in the wrong. When Ink had finally broached the topic that he couldn’t love Dream the way he wanted him to, when he finally couldn’t stand seeing Dream so depressed any longer, Dream had apologized immediately.

_“I’m so sorry Ink… I didn’t realize I was upsetting you… Can I have some time to think about what you said? Sorry I can’t give you a response right away.”_

It hurt Ink deep in his soul to watch Dream like that. He owed a lot to Dream. Dream had made him feel welcome when he had first moved to their little suburb. Dream was his friend when no one else had been. He and Blue made him feel like a family. When Dream confessed to him senior year of high school, at their graduation, he agreed to go out with him. He had thought maybe he could learn to like Dream in that way. After all, Dream had done so much for him, he could do this one little thing for Dream, right?

Then it got out of hand. They dated for two years, moved in together, they had even adopted a cat that Ink continually forgot to feed. They shared everything: their thoughts and feelings, their fears, and their bodies. Making love to Dream wasn’t _bad_ in any sense of the word. It was exciting at first, but Ink quickly felt that something was right. It was almost always Dream who initiated it, in that sweet little way of his, and Ink never really felt compelled to do more than the bare minimum. He had started to think something was wrong with him, but when he finally put it into a search engine, he was given the term _demisexual._

Demisexual, a person who doesn’t feel sexual attraction unless there is a strong emotional connection to the other person.  

It made him question everything. If there wasn’t a strong emotional connection, did that mean he didn’t even like Dream as a person? He decided that no, that didn’t mean he didn’t like Dream as a person or even as a friend. It just meant that he didn’t feel romantically inclined towards his friend. And that devastated him. He distanced himself. He tried to figure things out on his own, to wait till he made that connection, but he couldn’t. In the end, he found himself sexually attracted to other people, but not Dream. He figured out that the term didn’t apply to him, but it did give him insight into his relationship and the ways he was contributing to Dream’s unhappiness.

Dream was the official one to break things off between them. Ink knew it wasn’t for Dream’s sake that Dream ended it. It was for his. Even when Ink was breaking his heart, Dream remained kind, trying to do what was best for his partner. He didn’t think of himself, or about becoming happy and finding someone else. He only thought about Ink’s happiness and how he had made Ink feel unhappy for so long.

Ink tried his best to assure Dream that he hadn’t been unhappy. Just confused. But he only ended up making things worse. So, he made the decision to save up, find a job in the city, and get as far away as he was comfortable with from Dream. They needed space. Dream needed time without him to heal; and he needed the independence.

Then there was Error.

Even though it had only been a little over a week since they met, he already felt the difference. His heart raced when Error leaned in. His soul shifted frantically when they kissed. He wanted to see Error every single chance he got. He wanted to text him all day, even though Error wasn’t the texting type. He wanted to push Error down and experience him. Error made him feel special in a way that Dream hadn’t quite been able to. Dream made him feel special, sure, but Error, Error made him feel special out of everyone in the vicinity. Dream would pay extra attention to Ink, but Error paid hardly any attention to anyone else so when he paid attention to _Ink_ it was like the world faded away and it was only the two of them.

Now he realized just how wrong he had been to drag on his and Dream’s relationship as long as he did. If Dream had felt this way about him, he couldn’t imagine the kind of agony he must have felt when he saw Ink pulling away from him. He tried to imagine Error doing that with him and he felt terrible. He knew Dream forgave him for it… But Ink kind of wished he wouldn’t. He didn’t deserve it.

“Ink?” Chara asked, leaning forward to get his attention. He blinked rapidly, coming back to attention.

“Yeah?” He asked, awkwardly rubbing the back of his skull.

“It’s time to close up. And your friend… Blue? Is waiting for you.” She shrugged and left, going back to her work.

Ink blinked again. He forgot he and Blue were going to be practicing cooking tonight. He didn’t remember asking Blue to meet him at work, but he must have since Blue knew the address. He hopped up and began to help Chara in the back before moving to their duties up front. He spotted his friend walking around the gallery, looking at the paintings. He was dressed in workout clothes, so he must have just come from training one of his clients.

“Blue!” He called happily, not worrying about his volume since they front door was locked and they weren’t expecting anyone else.

“Ink!” Blue turned and grinned at him. Ink went to greet his friend and they shared a quick side hug before separating again. “It’s nice to see ya, buddy! We have a lot to catch up on, and not just the Error stuff!”

“I know, I know. We’ll be able to talk a lot tonight and you can see my apartment!” Ink chimed happily.

“I heard Error, so I had to come over.” Chara inserted herself into the conversation. Ink watched his friend’s eyes move to her and linger longer than they probably should have. The artist grinned to himself. Chara was a good foot taller than the other skeleton, and was a bit abrasive, but if there was anyone who could handle her it would be Blue. Plus, Ink already knew she had a thing for monsters of the skeletal variety. He would have to ask his friend about it later.

“I’ve just been telling him everything about Error. He hasn’t even met him yet, but he knows just about everything I do about him.” Ink laughed.

“Yep! And tonight, I’m helping him put together the perfect meal that’ll knock Error off his feet! Mweh heh heh!” Blue smiled smugly. Ink watched as Chara blinked, smiling a bit shyly as she heard Blue’s laugh. Ink was definitely going to work on setting them up together. He’d make a note in his phone so he would remember.

“What are you going to cook?” Chara asked.

“Tacos!” Ink chirped happily. “Blue makes great tacos.”

“Tacos?” Chara seemed taken aback.

“Not tacos.” Blue added. “We’re going to try something fancier. I was thinking roasted chicken, mweh heh heh.”  

“Roasted chicken is fancy.” Chara nodded. “Error really likes potatoes, too. If you get the little ones and cook it with the chicken, he’ll love it.”

“Do you cook a lot, Chara?” Blue asked, seeming to be awed by her. She smiled and nodded.

“I do! It’s kind of my hobby.” She shrugged. “I think we’re all done closing up. You can go home now, Ink.” She smiled at him. “It was nice meeting you, Blue.”

“It was nice meeting you too!” Blue chorused, though he seemed a bit put out that they needed to leave, but he turned away anyway. “So, I think we can stop by the grocery store on our way and get the stuff. Is that okay?”

“That’s fine with me!” Ink smiled happily as they left the art gallery. “By the way… what do you think of Chara?”

 

* * *

 

 

Error stood in the lobby of the hospital next to the elevators that the nice ladies at the front desk had asked him to wait by once he asked for his brother. It was weird to refer to Geno as “doctor” but he supposed that was one of the perks of having gone through medical school. While he was waiting, he got to hear these nice ladies’ conversation about him and his brother.

“They both have those… _glitch_ looking things on their bodies…” One whispered.

“I guess that means they really are related if they both came out with something like that… But this one’s much more… interesting looking… Do you think it’s some kind of disease?”

“I haven’t heard of anything like it. Maybe it’s a weird, monster genetic disease…”

Error sighed.

He had heard comments like this his entire life. That he looked weird. That he might be sick. Their mom had taken him and Geno to the doctor and she told her that they were both healthy. Their glitches were just something they would have to live with for the rest of their lives. The whispers were something he had to get used to as a kid. He used to try and pick fights with everyone who made fun of him or his brother. Geno had been the same way, until he got tired of it. But Error had never tired of it, and after Fresh had his growth spurt, he took over intimidating people for his older brothers. No one wanted to mess with a six-foot 90s freak, so they left the brothers alone.

By the time Error had entered college, he was mostly immune to it. He did get in a lot of drunken fights where the insult would be flung, but it only helped fuel his rage. He always won those fights. The stares were another thing. He just wanted to be left alone, but he was stared at pretty much everywhere he went. He was able to brush it off, especially if it was a child or an older person. Not so much with people his age.

And that’s why he disliked Ink the first time he saw him.

It was the day they met. He had just gotten home, and his new neighbor was getting pizza. He didn’t expect someone he didn’t even know to stare at him so brazenly in the middle of the hallway. He sneered at the smaller skeleton, hoping that would dissuade him, but it hadn’t. The little shit continued to stare. Then he came running to his door, playing the hero, and the rest really was history. Error knew, now, that Ink’s staring was for a very different reason than him just being strange. It was because Ink was staring at him with an artist’s eye, like Error was some magnificent piece of artwork strung up in the Louvre. It was the closest anyone had come to calling him beautiful.

“Error?”

Error pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned to see his brother grinning at him from just outside one of the elevators. He smiled gently. He would never admit it to Fresh, but he had just realized how much he had missed Geno.

His brother was wearing his red scarf, even with his white doctor’s coat. The guy had never taken it off in Error’s entire memory. And then, there were the glitches. The glitches were placed over his right eye, and only his right eye. Error had them all over his body, but Geno’s were specific to his eye.

“Geno.” He said, walking over to him. They stood there for an awkward second before Geno pulled him into a hug.

“It’s good to see you… And you don’t look too terrible, so I’m guessing you’re eating real meals and not just having beer and crackers…?” Geno pulled back, trying to look for any signs of a return to Error’s standard diet.

“I’m up to eating frozen meals now.” Error shrugged but grinned anyway.

“I can’t promise the cafeteria is any better than a frozen meal, but you don’t have to warm it up yourself.” The older brother steered the younger back into the elevator so that they could go to said cafeteria. “What have you been up to? Anything… exciting?”

Error could tell that Fresh had mentioned Ink to Geno by the way he was asking without actually asking. He supposed it really should be Geno who knew that he officially had a boyfriend before Fresh, though Fresh had only been half a day early.

“Well… I met someone.” Error looked away, blushing slightly.

“Someone? Like…?” Geno blinked, smiling and waiting for Error to spell it out.

“Like… I have…” Error wished he could just text this to Geno, but Geno would want to hear it in person rather than through text. “I have a boyfriend.”

“Error!” Geno cried, grinning and gently pushing his shoulder in a playful manner. “Tell me about him. What’s he like? How’d you meet?”

Error told him the story of his and Ink’s first encounter, including the terrifying cockroaches that he hated. They walked while he spoke, Geno cooing at the right parts and laughing at the right times.

“Man, he’s really getting special treatment from you.” Geno sighed as they stood in line at the counter buffet. “You must really like him.”

Error colored at that.

“Y-yeah… He’s pretty special.” He admitted, only causing Geno to grin more.

“When can I meet him?” He asked. “You can make it look like an accident. Just cut one of your phalanges and make him take you here. It’ll be perfect and I can practice my healing.”

“I’m not cutting myself so you can meet him! You can meet him in a normal way. I’ll just… have to figure something out.” Error loaded his tray with dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, and a slice of chocolate cake.

“Your tray looks like you’re eating for a five-year-old… Does Ink mind that you have the palate of a child?” Geno teased.

“I took him to the best spot for food trucks in New Home City and he chose a hotdog.” Error shrugged.

“So, he also eats like a five-year-old.” Geno noted as they went to sit down at one of the tables after he had paid for them. They sat at a table in a far corner of the room, away from the other hospital staff who were taking their break at the time.

They continued their conversation, mostly on Error’s side, telling Geno all of the details he had about Ink. Geno grinned happily, excited that his brother had found someone that he was interested in. Then, the inevitable happened.

“Genooooo~!”

Error watched Geno’s entire demeanor change. He frowned and tensed, and Error had to check and make sure his eyelight didn’t change color. The fact that it didn’t was the only inkling Error had that Geno enjoyed this person’s attention, even if only a little bit.

He turned to look at the caller, another skeleton (who had only one eyelight lit) dressed in a white doctor’s coat. Underneath the coat was a black hoodie, and he had the hood up even though they were indoors, and he was on call. Error frowned, remembering Fresh’s words.

The morgue dude.

“Geno!” The doctor finally got to their tables. He was grinning, but Error still found it eerie. The guy definitely gave off the vibe of someone who worked with dead bodies all day. “Who’s this? You’re not cheating on me, are you?”

“Reaper, this is my brother, Error. Error, this is Reaper. He’s a pathologist here at the hospital.” Geno explained gruffly. Error didn’t offer his hand, but neither did Reaper. They simply stared at each other before Reaper finally looked back to Geno.

“I can see the resemblance, but you’re definitely the cutest.” Reaper leaned in slightly to Geno, who leaned back as far as he could possibly get. “I should let you get back to your family dinner… Nice to meet you, Error. And Geno?”

“What?”

“My offer still stands. I promise that it’ll be the best date of your life.” Reaper winked before sauntering off.

“Wow.” Error muttered, watching the doctor leave.

“Yeah…” Geno groaned. “He does this every day. And every day I say no. But he’s persistent. They only reason he left me alone right now is because you’re here. I don’t know what to do about him.”

“I think you should take him up on it.”

“What?!” Geno started, and Error saw his eye color change to the strange mix of red and blue that it turned to when he was about to use his magic. But he blinked and his eyelight reverted back to the neutral white pinprick. “Why would you even say that?! You saw how he was!”

“If he’s that persistent and you really didn’t like it, his coworkers would be performing an autopsy on _him._ Admit it, you like the attention he gives you.” Error grinned. Geno squirmed in his seat, a blush tinging his cheeks as he sputtered half-denials before giving up.

“Why can’t you be like Fresh and tell me that he really is being annoying?” He huffed.

“He is being annoying. But you like it.” Error’s grin only grew as his brother continued to try and deny his feelings.

“But-“

“No buts! Just go and if you don’t like it, you don’t have to go on another one.”

“Ugh. Okay, I guess. But if it ends up terribly, it’s all your fault!”

“I’ll take it.”

 

* * *

 

Ink and Blue’s dabble into cooking didn’t go well.

Ink had forgotten that Blue was a terrible cook. Even his famous tacos were famous for very different reasons than Blue thought they were famous for.

It had taken them a long time to even prepare the chicken, once they realized that the preparation should have taken place the day before, so the meat could marinate, and once they had tackled that problem, everything had just gone downhill from there.

The sauce burned, the asparagus cooked too quickly, and the chicken… The chicken didn’t make it.

Ink and Blue had been sincerely engrossed in their conversation about a new movie that was going to release that week, when suddenly they heard pounding on the door.

“Ink?! Ink, are you okay?!” Error’s voice came through the wooden door.

The two friends finally looked around them. The apartment was filled with smoke, and when Ink looked to the smoke detector, he saw that the damn contraption was off.

“Hang on!” Ink cried as he flew to the oven and turned it off, opening the door. Smoke billowed out and he grabbed the oven mitt, pulling the pan out. The chicken was black and hard. He glanced at the time. The poor thing had been in the oven about an hour longer than it should have. Ink had forgotten to set the timer.

Blue was busy opening the windows to try and let the smoke out and fanning the air with one of Ink’s sketchbooks.

“Do you need me to get the door?” Blue asked, continuing to fan.

“No!” Ink quickly hurried to the door and opened it with a grin. “Error!” He cried happily, holding out his arms. Error completely bypassed him and rushed into the apartment, starting to look for the source of the smoke.

“Error…” Ink pouted. “It’s fine… Now, please, come here-“ He still held his arms out, just waiting for Error to insert himself into them.

Error continued to ignore him, even after he spotted the burnt bird that was sitting on the counter. His body relaxed and he sighed.

“Ink…” He turned back to his boyfriend. “What…?”

“We were trying to cook.” Blue offered, smiling slightly at the stranger, who didn’t seem quite like a stranger.

Error barely glanced at him before sighing again and going over to Ink, pulling him into a tight hug that he lingered in.

“That scared the shit out of me…” He mumbled. Ink blushed, and he knew he should truly feel sorry for making Error worried, but he laughed.

“It’s fine… I’m fine…” He hugged Error back. “I was just… trying to practice Friday’s dinner…”

There was a moment of silence before Error let out a ripple of laughs.

“In the case, I’m glad you decided to practice. Stars know what would have happened if you hadn’t.” He continued to laugh.

“Hey! I was trying to do something nice for you and you’re going to make fun of me?” Ink pouted. “Jerk!”

“You’re the one that burnt the…” Error looked over his shoulder. “Honestly, I don’t know what that was.”

“It _is_ a chicken. I’m sure there’s some edible parts…” Ink frowned thoughtfully. Even he didn’t believe that.

“I think you need to rethink dinner.” Error offered.

“I think you’re right…” Ink grimaced, then smiled, pulling Error down for a kiss. “You were worried about me…” He teased.

“Um… guys…?” Blue asked awkwardly, still fanning.

“Oh!” Ink’s eyelights turned to two different colored exclamation points. He had been so caught up in Error that he had forgotten that they had an audience. He slowly peeled his way out of Error’s embrace. “Error, this is Blue. Blue, this is Error.”

Blue grinned and quickly closed the space between them, offering his hand to his friend’s new beau. This time, Error did extend his hand to the other, giving it a small shake before letting go.

“It’s nice to meet you!” Blue said happily. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Uh… It’s nice to meet you, too…” Error squinted slightly. “Do we… Have we met before?”

Blue thought for a moment, looking Error up and down before his face lit up in recognition.

“Yes!” He shifted happily. “We went to middle school together! I would kind of…”

“Follow me?” Error laughed a bit awkwardly. “You kind of stalked me everywhere I went…”

“Um yeah… I really wanted to be your friends…” Blue shifted slightly.

Finally, it hit Ink.

“Error is the ERROR you had a crush on?!” Ink asked loudly.

Blue flinched and laughed, his cheeks lighting up a bit.

“Yeah… it looks like it is…” He laughed again. “It’s kind of awkward now… What are the chances?”

Error finally laughed and shook his head. “It’s really… Weird. I always hoped you were doing okay.”

“Yeah? I hoped you were happy and looks like you are!” Blue grinned at the two. Both Error and Ink blushed.

“Thanks, Blue.” Error smiled slightly and looked away. “I am.”

Before Ink could react, Blue jumped at the chance to take his leave.

“Speaking of which, I should get going. Don’t want to keep the lovebirds from nesting.” He winked at Ink. Error just flushed and looked at the ground.

“Good night Blue! Thanks for the help!” Ink followed him to the door.

“No problem… Sorry it ended up… Not well.” Blue laughed softly.

“It’s fine. I’ll just have to think of something else!” Ink assured him before waving his goodbye and shutting the door. He turned to Error. “I’m still hungry.” He complained.

“I can order you something.” Error began to pull out his phone, but Ink quickly pushed his hand back down.

“No thanks. What I want is already here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew, that was a long chapter but we finally get to meet Geno! AfterDeath is probably my second favorite Sans ship. :) The chapters may be getting a little longer now, since I'm trying to include more characters. I can't promise that they'll all be long, but we'll be seeing more of the other characters from now on. Thanks for reading!


	10. Overprotective Brother Problems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross figures out that he does NOT like sushi, and Error finally gets to watch Undernovela.

Cross started the morning by staring in the mirror. He was unsure of himself, or perhaps more accurately, was unsure of how to dress himself. It wasn’t the first time he had changed outfits multiple times in the morning, but those were times where he was trying to find something without a stain on it. Today, he wasn’t sure exactly what to wear. Should he dress in a simple black T-shirt and his normal jacket, or should he try to dress it up a bit with a collared shirt? After putting said collared shirt on, he frowned, then threw it into one of the piles of trash on his floor. He decided on a black turtle neck and his normal jacket. It was at times like these that he wished he had someone he could call for fashion advice. Error dressed like a hobo and would rather stitch holes close rather than by a new pair of jeans, and Epic… Honestly, Epic was the last person he would call for advice. About anything.

And so, Cross left his shared apartment and headed to his university’s campus. He didn’t live far, so he walked. This also allowed him to stop and get coffee on the way to school, as he didn’t actually own a coffee pot himself. He might have spent a bit too much money on daily coffee, but he would rather do that then get a coffee maker. His roommate would throw it out the first time it messed up, anyway. The guy had some anger issues.

Cross was going on his not-date with Dream today. Lunch at the student union. Totally not a date. But still a date. So, it was a not-date.

Cross could plainly see Dream was in no shape to actually date anyone. (Cross wasn’t the type to get that lucky.) However, Cross had already made his intentions extremely clear. And yet, Dream still agreed to see him. Cross knew he had made it seem like he was fine with something casual, but the more he thought about the little skeleton, the more uncertain he became. But he wasn’t Error, and definitely wasn’t going to rush into something. Especially with someone who seemed so torn. It wasn’t fair to Dream for him to put pressure on him that way. So, he made up his mind to simply play the “rebound” and hope for the best.

When he got to school, Error was already waiting outside his office.

“Guess it kind of sucks that you turned down the TA position and don’t have a key.” Cross jingled his keys in front of Error’s nose, a smirk on his face.

The dark skeleton batted them away like an annoyed cat.

“I would probably kill those kids for being stupid.” Error grumbled.

“But now you have to wait for me like a plebian.” Cross huffed and unlocked his door. Error said nothing and Cross shrugged. “You’re grumpy this morning.”

“I’m grumpy every morning.” Error retorted.

“You haven’t been _as_ grumpy since you met Ink…” Cross paused. “Did something happen?”

“Nothing happened. He… he just has so much energy.” Error frowned. “I was up late.”

Cross blinked, then smirked.

“No way! You did it?! Already?! You guys are barely even official and you’re already-“

Cross was cut off by Error slapping his hand over his mouth.

“No. We didn’t do _that_.” He pulled his hand away. “We started making out, then he pulled away and got distracted. He started showing me his sketchbooks, then his paints. Then he remembered it was the first time I had been to his apartment, so he gave me a tour.”

“Doesn’t it look the same as yours?” Cross was puzzled.

“Yeah… so he showed me all of his stuff. Then he wanted to make out. He got distracted, again, and asked about my visit to Geno. Then I tried to go home but he pulled me into another make out session. When I got home it was 2am. Cross, he’s insane.” Contrary to his words, a tiny smile was on Error’s face.

“So are you.” Cross pointed out. “All your little neuroses. Like having to clean everyday… Meat has to be on the right side of the plate, not the left, and no other food can be touching… Does he know about that?”

“Shut up. Dream’s going to find out you eat like tractor today. He probably won’t want to see you again.” Error returned.

“Ink knows you love telenovelas and he still likes you!” Cross actually pouted.

“Yeah, but Dream doesn’t know that that’s probably your only clean shirt! Or that you have piles of literal garbage on the floor.”

“At least I didn’t meet him because he thought I was murdering someone!”

“You-“

“Cross.”

Both of them jumped and turned to the door. There he stood, the morning sun shining in through one of the windows behind him, like an angel summoned from a sacred text.

Nightmare.

If Cross could pale, he would have. He let go of Error, who he had grabbed in an attempt to shake the nonsense out of. Error let go of Cross as well, who he had grabbed in a totally not-about-to-beat-the-shit-out-of way.

“What?” Cross asked, steeling himself back into his quiet demeanor. He always amazed Error, who couldn’t put on a proverbial mask no matter how hard he would have liked to.

“I need to talk with you. Alone.” It was a command.

“I’ll go ahead and go to class. See you later, Cross.” Error said, quickly gathering his things. Nightmare was giving off an intimidating aura today. He couldn’t get away fast enough.

When the third wheel was out of earshot, Nightmare turned on Cross.

“What are your intentions with Dream?” Nightmare asked, a frown etched into his skull.

“I… what?” Cross tilted his head. “What about Dream?”

“Dream! You’ve been flirting with him all weekend. He told me. So. What. Are. Your. Intentions?” Nightmare spat.

“I uh… we’re going to go get lunch…?” Cross offered.

“What else?!”

Cross flinched.

“Wait… Don’t tell me… You have a crush on him too??” Cross gaped.

Nightmare faltered, a look of sheer surprise coming over him.

“What? No! He’s my brother, why would I like him like that?!” He cried.

Cross jumped back.

“You’re his brother?!” He nearly shrieked.

“How did you not know?” Nightmare was in a frenzy. “You always watch him when he picks me up from anime club!”

“I thought he was your friend!” Cross gasped.

“How would you think that?! We’re twins! Twins! We look exactly alike except for our eyes!”

“All skeletons look the same!”

And that’s when it hit Cross.

“Wait. You… You know I’ve been checking out your brother?!”

“How could I not! You have a really intimidating stare!”

“…” Cross paused.

“Did Dream ever…?”

“No. Your dumb ass is lucky. He’d probably have run the opposite direction.” Nightmare sighed. “Wait. You still didn’t answer me!”

“I uh… I like Dream…” Cross shrugged again. “I just… saw the opportunity…”

“Oh, my stars…” Nightmare rubbed the space between his brow ridges. “You are an idiot.”

“I got into graduate school.”

“A miracle.” Nightmare huffed. “Okay, Cross. Do you want to fuck him?”

“What?” Cross’s cheekbones colored. Why was this hellish creature even bothering him? “No!”

Nightmare frowned.

“Are you saying he isn’t sexually attractive to you?”

“What?!” Cross cried. “What is wrong with you?! Do you want me to want to… um… do that with your brother?”

Nightmare burst out laughing.

“Okay, I guess you passed that.”

“What… how?” Cross had never been more confused. And that included the time he had gotten black out drunk and woken up in a penthouse with monsters he didn’t even know who were doing lines on the coffee table.

“You couldn’t even say that you wanted to do it with him.” Nightmare laughed again. “How cute. Do you want to date him?”

Cross snorted at being called ‘cute’.

“Maybe? He doesn’t seem like he’s in a place for a new relationship.”

“You pass on that too.” Nightmare nodded to himself. “I guess I can be okay with you seeing him.”

“I don’t really need your blessing, but thanks?” Cross was still puzzled. “Aren’t you sad I’m taking him out and not you?”

Now it was Nightmare’s turn to be confused.

“What? Why the hell would I want that?” He asked.

“Um… You kind of bothered me. Like all the time.”

“I was trying to figure you out. Dream… needs a distraction. You’re an idiot, but I thought you might be able to make him laugh. And you do, with all those stupid memes.” He sneered.

Cross was quiet for a moment, taking in the backhanded compliment.

“He liked my memes?” He asked quietly.

“You’re impossible.”

 

* * *

 

Dream frowned as he washed his hands in the student union building’s bathroom. He was supposed to meet Cross in exactly five minutes, according to his watch. He was jittery. Nervous, maybe. He stared at himself, his brows furrowed. He couldn’t read his emotions, which was a big deal, since he was generally very good at reading others’ emotions. He thought that he might be feeling nervous because it was going to be the first time he saw Cross since he kissed him. His nerves could also be coming from the thought that he might be “leading” Cross on by seeing him again. Cross said he was fine with that, but Dream wasn’t so sure _he_ was fine with it. He didn’t want to hurt anyone.

And finally, he thought the fluttering he felt might be something else entirely…

Excitement.

The thought that he might be _excited_ to see Cross brought another flurry of emotions. Happiness, more nerves, and even a little guilt.

He splashed his face with a bit of water and dried himself off with a paper towel. He glanced at his watch. It was time.

He left the bathroom and went to the main entrance, glancing around. It reminded him of when he would wait for Ink somewhere. Ink was usually late because he would forget something or other. And it had frustrated Dream because Ink would forget to text him that he was running late. Dream let out a sigh right as his eyes landed on Cross, who was already looking at him and had his hand held up in a slight wave. Dream smiled and began to cross over to him. Cross was still staring at him with that intense gaze, but Dream didn’t find it quite as intimidating now. The memes had definitely helped him see Cross as a different person than the one he had thought he met.

“Cross!” He smiled happily.

“…hi, Dream.” Cross replied, averting his gaze. Dream studied him for a moment, then relaxed. Cross was nervous.

“Shall we go?” He asked. The nerves were definitely from excitement.

“Go?” Cross looked a bit startled.

“To the food court?” Dream smiled and tilted his head. Cross’s expression hardly changed, but Dream could have sworn that his gesture flustered the guy.

“Oh, yeah.” Cross shifted, a bit embarrassed. “Let’s go.”

They weaved in and out of the other students walking to and from various different spots of the building. Cross led, since he was the tallest, and honestly, the more intimidating. People went around them just to avoid getting in his way. For a brief second, Dream wondered if Cross ever noticed.

When they arrived at the food court, Cross turned around.

“My treat.” He said simply before entering the small cluster of different eateries. Dream blinked slightly, but still smiled. Maybe he just needed to get Cross to loosen up.

He perused the different types of food, though he knew he exactly what he wanted, watching Cross from the corner of his eye. The poor guy seemed to be having a difficult time deciding on what he wanted. Dream laughed a bit to himself. He had never met anyone quite like Cross.

He finally picked up his vegetarian sushi and went back to Cross.

“I got what I wanted.” He chimed. Cross turned and looked down at his hands.

“Sushi?” Cross looked thoughtful. “That sounds good.”

After Cross had gotten his own tray of sushi, a fried shrimp roll, he paid for the two of them. It was a nice day, so they decided to eat at one of the tables outside. Spring was in the air and Dream took a deep breath, stretching his arms out happily.

“Spring is one of my favorite times of year!” He sighed as he pulled his arms back and opened his eyes. “What’s your favorite time of year, Cross?”

Cross blinked before snapping back to reality. He frowned in thought.

“October.” He said finally, not offering much more than that.

“For Halloween?” Dream asked.

“Yeah… and scary movies, haunted houses, pranks…” Cross tried to pick up one piece of his sushi with chopsticks but dropped it a mere inch off the tray. He looked at how Dream was holding his and began to adjust his own.

“Oh…” Dream laughed nervously. “I don’t really like scary things.”

“I noticed.” Cross had finally been successful in picking up the piece.

“Sorry… I didn’t mean to cling to you the other night. I just… really hate horror films!” Dream pouted.

Cross let out a laugh and, for the first time since Dream met him, smiled at him.

“That’s why I picked it.” He admitted. Dream gasped.

“You played me from the start? That’s so rude!” Dream puffed up playfully. Cross laughed for him again. Dream could have melted.

“If you uh… haven’t noticed… I’m not… I’m not good with social interactions.” Cross smiled sheepishly. Dream softened, smiling at him.

“I think you’re just shy.” He stuffed a piece of sushi in his mouth.

“I guess you’re right…” Cross finally lifted his piece of sushi so his mouth. His eyes widened and he flushed, looking distressed. Before Dream could get up and try to administer the Heimlich maneuver, Cross swallowed. “Don’t like…” He coughed and took a drink of water. 

“Is this your first time eating sushi?” Dream blinked.

“Y-yeah…” Cross admitted.

“Why’d you get it? It’s student union sushi… it’s kind of on par with gas station sushi. Your first time should have been somewhere better.” Dream laughed.

“I didn’t want to gross you out with my messy eating.” Cross grimaced and looked away.

“I’ve already seen you eat.” Dream laughed quietly. “Remember? We ate pizza together the other night.”

“Oh yeah…” Cross remembered how cute Dream looked eating pizza. Then again, he thought everything Dream did was cute. “You weren’t grossed out?”

“Why would I be grossed out? You always used a napkin. Some foods are just messy.” Dream smiled and shrugged.

“Oh… good.” Cross laughed awkwardly. Dream could get used to the sound of it.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a few moments while Cross tried to eat another piece of sushi because damn it, he wasn’t wasting his money.

“What do you study?” Dream finally broke the silence.

“International Security.” Cross forced another piece down.

“What got you interested in that?” Dream asked, setting his chopsticks aside. He had finished in the time it had taken Cross to eat two pieces.

“I wanted to join the military, but I was never allowed to because of my eyes. I’ve always just kind of… wanted to protect people. So, I went into security instead so that I can do something, at least.” He fumbled another piece and finally gave up. “What about you?”

“I study non-profit management.” Dream smiled softly before reaching into his bag and pulling out a granola bar. He slid it across the table. “Take it. I don’t want you to be hungry later.”

Watching Cross blush made Dream’s soul stop. It jump-started with a frenzy beat, threatening to leap out of his chest.

“Thanks…” Cross mumbled, taking it and began to nibble on it. “Why did you choose that?”

“I like helping people. I want to do something that makes a difference.” He paused. “I guess we’re not so different.”

Cross made a soft noise.

“I guess we’re not.” 

“I need to get going. I have archery practice.” Dream moved to stand up.

“Archery practice?” Cross blinked.

“I’m on the archery team.”

“We have one?”

Dream laughed. “Yeah! We’re not the best, but we’re not bad!” He assured as he slung his backpack on. “Thanks for the lunch, Cross. I really enjoyed it.”

“Can I come sometime?” Cross asked. Dream blinked.

“Come where?”

“To one of the competitions?”

Dream laughed softly.

“Of course. I’ll let you know when the next one is.”

“And Dream?”

Dream smiled and nodded.

“Can I see you again?”

Now it was Dream’s turn to blush. Cross could’ve died at that moment and be content with his fate. 

“Yeah… I’d really like that.”

 

* * *

 

It was Friday night, and Error was stuck in limbo.

He was continually getting texts from Ink telling him not to come over just yet. It was over an hour after Ink had originally told him to be at his place. The artist kept asking for “five more minutes”, then it turned into ten, then twenty, then thirty…

Error sighed as he laid on his small couch, staring up at the ceiling. If Ink was trying to do the roasted chicken again, he should be concerned. But he didn’t smell any smoke, and occasionally he would hear a thump from his boyfriend’s apartment. He knew Ink was up to something. If it had been anyone else in the universe, he would have been thoroughly pissed. But Ink brought out his patience like no one else could. He would blame it on his dick, but Chara hadn’t been able to do it either.

Finally, the text came.

_“Ready!”_

Error took a deep breath and pulled himself off the couch and out the door. Again, he had tried to dress nicely for his date. It wasn’t much, but he thought it looked dressier than his normal outfit. He was wearing jeans without any patches. That’s how special Ink was to him. He knocked on the door. Ink must have been waiting just on the other side because it burst open and the smaller skeleton flung himself at Error, wrapping his arms around his neck.

“Error! I missed you!” He pulled back just enough so that he could give Error a peck.

“Could’ve seen me sooner if you had whatever it is ready on time.” Error scowled. Ink just laughed.

“A small price to pay for perfection!” Ink chimed. “Come in! Your romance awaits.”

He moved aside and gestured for Error to come in. The skeleton stepped inside and was immediately struck by what had been constructed in the middle of the floor.

“A pillow fort?” He questioned, turning to look at Ink.

Ink closed the door and gently pulled Error by his sleeve over to the contraption.

“Shoes off.” He commanded. Error awkwardly slipped out of his shoes before he was forced to crawl into the tent made of blankets.

Inside were a few pillows, a bowl of popcorn, and various snacks and drinks, all placed in front of, and around, Ink’s laptop. Error moved onto his stomach, laying his chest on one of the pillows. Ink moved beside him, doing the same.

“This is already better than the chicken.” Error commented.

“That was made with love.” Ink huffed.

“Maybe we should break up then. I don’t want to end up scorched.”

“I’ll never do anything nice for you ever again, ass.” Ink huffed.

“You already did.” Error grinned and looked around their little tent. “I guess we’re going to watch movies?”

“Better!” Ink smirked, proud of his brilliant plan to woo Error. “I know you’re really busy all the time with school and you don’t really get to catch up on it… Sooo, I downloaded all of the episodes of Undernovela you haven’t seen yet and we’re going to watch them!”

Error blinked.

“What? You don’t like it? I thought for sure…” Ink looked down sadly, muttering to himself about where he had gone wrong. Error gently grabbed his chin and turned his head so that he was looking at him again.

“It’s really sweet. Thanks, Ink.” He said softly and gave Ink one of his signature forehead kisses.

“In that case, let’s watch.” Ink pulled up the first episode on his laptop. He settled in next to Error, gently laying his head on his shoulder.

 

* * *

 

 Ink had no idea what time it was when they finished. But almost all of their snacks were gone, and Error was staring at the screen with heavy eyelids, a contented smile on his face. Ink wasn’t ready for him to leave. When Error began to try and wiggle out of their little space, he clutched his arm, pulling him back.

“Not yet.” He whispered. Something in the air around them changed with the utterance of those two, simple words.

Error paused and settled back. He looked at Ink softly, waiting.

Ink said nothing else, only moved in and kissed Error softly. Their kiss gently moved deeper, slowly and steadily moving against one another. This was different than the other, daily make out sessions that they had had. This was something entirely new. Something soft but exciting. They weren’t frantic, only simply moving with one another under the canopy with blankets.

Ink was the one to initiate it.

He gently guided Error on top of him, only breaking their kiss when Error pulled away, looking down at him with questioning eyes. Ink’s eyelights were double hearts, telling Error what he wasn’t able to say.

“Are you sure?” Error asked breathlessly. Ink smiled gently nodded.

“Yes.”

They connected for the first time that night, in the safety of Ink’s constructed fort. Ink allowed himself to submit, for once leaving his domineering traits behind. Error was ready for him. He left no part of Ink’s body untouched, unexplored, unsatisfied. More than once, Ink had to stop him so that he could pleasure him. There were a few moments where he thought Error would completely crash, but with a few deep breaths he was able to calm himself and continue.

When they finally met, fully, Ink had seen stars. He watched as Error’s expression changed, how he softened and cupped Ink’s cheek. Becoming one, even briefly, was nothing like what either of them had imagined it would be. Their souls were beating madly, in time with one another as if they were trying to escape their chests and melt into each other.

Afterwards, they laid together, Ink curled into Error’s chest, both of them panting. Error continuously placed kisses on Ink’s face, and every time Ink laughed and told him to stop, but it was only a half-hearted plea. He gently stroked Error’s spine, running his fingertips over the vertebrae, caressing the spinous processes. Finally, he suggested they move to the bed, promising his lover that he wanted him to stay the night. Besides, who was going to help him clean up the mess?

They slept that night, clinging to each other’s naked bodies. Before they went to sleep, Ink asked timidly,

“Do you think we’re moving too fast?”

Error looked at him, gently stroking his cheek bone.

“There’s no timeline for anything. It doesn’t matter as long as we want to be with each other, does it?” He offered.

Ink smiled.

“I guess not…”

Ink kissed him once more, for good luck, before settling down on a pillow.

“Goodnight, Error.”

“Goodnight, Inky.”   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah. That happened. I hope it was romantic because that's what I had imagined. But all I could think was, "They fuckin' in a pillow fort." So, I hope it was better for you guys. (And I don't like writing smut, so that's as good as it's gonna get.) 
> 
> Also, I am finishing up my current quarter at school, and then I'm going on a small vacation over spring break, so I'm not sure of when the next chapter will be posted. I have an idea that I've wanted to do, so that might be a small little thing I upload between my vacation and the other days of spring break so that you guys are not without. No promises though! 
> 
> As always, thank you for reading! I'm so humbled by you guys all the time! Thanks for enjoying this silly thing I made.
> 
> Edit: I also have Tumblr now. I don't know how to use it, really, but here it is: mutated-bunnies.tumblr.com
> 
> Maybe I'll do Drabble requests sometime ^^


	11. A Day in the Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fresh does a hard day's work while reminiscing about his childhood.

Fresh awoke the same as he always did. 7am sharp, to his alarm, and lying on his right side. He did not yawn, stretch as he sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes before putting his glasses on. He left his bed without a sound, going to the bathroom and turning on the shower.

He lived alone, in a nice two-bedroom apartment with large windows and a gorgeous view of the city’s skyline. One room was for him and the second... No matter how many times Fresh had asked him, Error always refused to move in with him. Fresh had thought it would take some of the graduate school induced stress off of him because he wouldn’t have to spend his money on a dump of an apartment in a bad part of town. Fresh made enough to support two people, so it wouldn’t have been an imposition on him. Moreover, Fresh wanted to do something to support his brother. Error always ended up flipped him off -which was conveniently hidden behind a rainbow-, telling him he didn’t need his charity and to go get a real job.

Thus, Fresh had an empty room.

He kept it empty, nothing hung on its stark white walls or stored in its lonely closet. He tried to tell himself it was because he wasn’t sure what to fill it with, though deep in his soul he knew he was saving it just in case Error had a change of heart.

After showering and brushing his teeth, he moved to the kitchen and made himself a smoothie bowl, placing the liquified fruit and almond milk into a wooden bowl and adding the decorations with a skilled hand. He went to his windows and opened the curtains, letting the morning sun naturally light the photo he snapped of his breakfast. He posted it to Undergram, captioned, _“Gotta have a rad breakfast to have a rad day.”_

It didn’t even take a full minute for him to get over 200 likes.

Most people thought being a social media influencer was easy, that you just had to be vapid and affluent enough to get sponsored. But Fresh didn’t see it that way. He found social media to be the best platform to spread his fresh vibes on, to use it for good. He hadn’t always been like that, though.  

After his accident, he had fallen into a dark bout of depression. He wasn’t sure what to do with himself. He had been on track for greatness, a child prodigy, and suddenly, it was all taken away from him by a simple schoolyard prank. He was in the hospital for weeks. Geno visited him often, and that’s where Fresh assumed he had gotten the ambition to become a pediatrician.

But Error…

Fresh finished his soup-smoothie and cleaned out the bowl. It was nine, so that left a few hours before he needed to begin the preparations for his photoshoot.

He quickly dressed into some of his flamboyant, neon-colored clothing, putting his hat on backwards as the finishing touch. He turned and looked at himself in the full-length mirror hanging from the back of his closet door. After giving himself a once-over, he threw himself a thumbs up before moving to leave.  

He grabbed the essentials: his wallet, his keys, and his skateboard, before he bid farewell to the little apartment he had made his home.

He moved along the sidewalks, weaving in and out of commuters trying to hurry to their jobs or meetings. He grinned the whole time, nodding to some of the people he caught staring at him. It wasn’t much, but every kindness was worth something.

_“How can you be sitting here all calm!” Error yelled in the hospital room, eyes swiveling to each of their family members. Everyone stilled, eyes widened in shock. Everyone except Fresh, whose eye sockets were still bandaged and obstructed his vision._

_“He was pushed! He was funking pushed and now look at him!” He screamed, tears falling from his eyes. “And you’re just funking sitting around!”_

Fresh blinked out of the memory just in time to swerve around a light post. He had somehow managed to skate his way into a quiet neighborhood with cute shops that lined the street. He sighed and pulled up to a bench, plopping down to take a moment to catch his breath. He reached underneath his glasses and rubbed the scarred areas around his eyes. Oh Error…

He glanced up at the clear sky and grinned to himself. It was going to be a rad day. He could feel it in his marrow. 

“Hey, mister...”

Fresh looked over and spotted a lizard-monster child.

“Whassup, lil broseph?” Fresh asked.

“Are you… are you FreshyFunk on Undergram?” The kid fidgeted as much as he could without having any hands to fidget with.

Fresh nodded and grinned.

“Ya, bro.” He admitted.

“So cool!” The kid hopped up and down. “Can I take a picture with you?”

“Dat’s aight.” Fresh stood and then kneeled next to kid, taking his phone from him and snapping the picture, showing the kid when he was done.

“I look so cool!” The kid took the phone in his mouth and placed it back in his bag. “Thank you, Fresh! I want to be just like you someday!”

Fresh didn’t have time to react before the kid ran back to his mother, a skateboard beside her on the sidewalk. He hopped back on and pushed, moving side-by-side with her up the concrete.

Fresh smiled and sat back down. Ten years ago, he wouldn’t have ever imagined that someone would be inspired by him. That a kid would want to be “just like him.” He had just wanted to get through those first few terrible weeks of recovery.

_“He can’t stand to see me, can he?” Fresh asked from the hospital bed._

_“That’s not it.” Geno assured, gently taking his hand. “It’s just…”_

_“It’s just that I’m just hideous.” Fresh finished, squinting at his brother._

Fresh decided he needed to do something with himself until it got closer to noon, so he got up and began visiting the shops in the area.

He didn’t really look for anything in particular, but he was able to snap a few pictures of some interesting knickknacks for Undergram. He found a few things that he thought Error could possibly like, but really, the guy didn’t like clutter and certainly wouldn’t use any of the practical items Fresh found. He saw some items that Geno might enjoy, one being a vintage stethoscope he found at an antique shop, but Geno would like anything Fresh bought him. He set it down as well, deciding not to get either of his brothers a souvenir.

As he exited the last shop, he glanced at his phone. 11am. Time to place his order.

He called the Greek restaurant, putting in an order for two of their famous gyros before climbing back on his skateboard and slowly rolling it down the street. It would be awhile before the order was ready, but he wanted to take his time anyway.

He set out on the back roads, trying not to lose himself in thought again. He didn’t want to endanger anyone. Especially the way he had been.

He enjoyed skateboarding. He always had. His mom had bought him a little one when he was just a wee toddler, and from then he would hardly ever get off the thing. Geno helped push him around in the backyard, with Error following closely at their side, watching every move Fresh made with a gentle scowl. His careful gaze never left his little brother.

He grew up that way, skating. He got his fair share of bumps and bruises, with Geno always there to put a bandaid on it. He even entered skateboard competitions. And he was good. Really good.

Medals and trophies lined his walls, yet when someone would congratulate him, he would shake it off with a, “It’s no big deal.” He was just doing something he liked, and he happened to be good at it. Error would always yell at him to have more pride in his work, that his skating wasn’t “just okay.” Fresh had always taken it as some of Error’s everyday criticism towards him. It wasn’t until later he realized how Error really felt.

That was the thing with Error; you could never really tell how he was feeling. At least, Fresh could hardly tell how Error felt about him, especially in their younger days.

One of their mom’s favorite stories to tell was the day they brought Fresh home from the hospital and introduced him to his big brothers. Geno loved him right away, but Error seemed more standoffish. He simply scowled into the bundle of blankets and then walked away.

A few minutes after their mother had placed him in his crib, she heard him screeching and quickly ran back into the room. Error was standing over him, his hand clenched in a fist.

It was the first, and only, time Error had punched him.

Growing up, he always thought Error hated him and it started with that one little punch. He was always being mean to him, teasing him, but as he got older, he realized it was only run-of-the-mill older brother badgering.

When Error finally came to visit him at the hospital, weeks after his strange outburst, Fresh came to understand Error’s true feelings. Error loved him. A lot, actually.

Fresh pulled up to the restaurant, right on the dot. He tucked his skateboard under his arm and entered the shop, paying and exiting fairly quickly. He got back on his skateboard and headed to the park; the same one he had seen Error and Ink at.

He paused briefly, thinking about the two of them. He hoped they were happy. He thought perhaps it was a good thing Error hadn’t moved in with him. He wouldn’t have met Ink if he had.

He turned onto one of the sidewalks that led into the iconic park. He really did enjoy it here. Not only was it the best spot to take pictures for his promotions, but he also got chill vibes from the place.

He waved to a few of the park regulars and moved to find the bench that he and his photographer usually met at. His little photoshoots never lasted long, but his assistant got paid all the same.

Finally, he spotted him.

“Decans!” He called, stopping in front of him, grinning.

“Hey.” Decans said quietly.

The guy didn’t speak much. He didn’t feel like it, and Fresh was fine with that. He gently took one of the styrofoam containers out of the plastic bag and handed it to his associate.

“Ya favorite.” He promised and sat down next to him. He made sure to sit as far to the opposite side as possible so that he wouldn’t accidentally touch Decans. The skeleton didn’t like touching, and thankfully Fresh had enough experience with his brother to know the proper protocol. Decans was appreciative, even if he didn’t say so.

They ate in silence and once they were done, Fresh threw their trash away, making sure to separate the recycling into the appropriate bin. He saw an opportunity and snapped a picture of his hand putting the plastic bag in.

_“Recycling is tha bomb!”_

300 likes.

They began their little photoshoot, Decans holding Fresh’s phone awkwardly as Fresh posed with his newest skateboard in various locations around the area. Decans didn’t really understand why Fresh had singled him out for his job. He wasn’t a photographer, by any means, but he got good food out of it, so he decided he didn’t mind too much.

After an hour, Fresh decided that he had enough photos to last through the next week.

“Thanks, dude.” He grinned at Decans.

“Yeah… no problem.” Decans gave him a small smile and shrug before fleeing. The quiet of the park didn’t cancel out the sounds of the city, so he couldn’t last in the place for much more than an hour. He slapped his noise cancelling headphones onto his skull and tucked his hands in his pockets, not able to get away fast enough.

Fresh watched him go before sitting back down and scrolling through his pictures once more, this time looking for the best ones. They were all good, but he couldn’t post them all. He chose the ones where the skateboard stood out the most. The pictures were supposed to highlight his sponsor, a skateboard company that provided skateboards to children in hospitals. Fresh had always been hesitant to take on sponsors, mostly because he didn’t want to endorse a company he didn’t agree with. So, he decided to only chose sponsors who were doing some kind of good in the world.

_“Error! What happened to you?” Geno gasped as Error stood into the doorway, panting._

_There were scratches and cuts all over his body, his shirt and pants were torn, and his right eye socket was already purpling with a bruise._

_“He got what was funking coming to him.” Error glowered, wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve._

_“Who?” Geno asked, tugging the skeleton inside and forcing him to sit down._

_“The funking guy that funking pushed Fresh in front of that funking bike!” Error cried, jumping out of his seat in fury._

_“What?” Fresh asked from the bed, blinking. He squinted, trying to see Error better._

_Error stomped over to him, bending down to look Fresh in the eyes. Fresh expected Error to flinch back, away from the mangled mess his eye sockets had become._

_“He got what he deserved, Fresh.” Error hissed, not looking away._

_“No one deserves…” Fresh started._

_“Funk, Fresh! Youdidn’t deserve this! I had to...I…” Error stopped short, his eyes welling with tears. “I couldn’t even funking look at you without becoming so angry at him. I had to do something… I… I’m sorry, Fresh.” _

_Error wrapped his arms around his shoulders, pulling him into a tender hug and making sure he wasn’t touching any of Fresh’s injuries._  

_Fresh didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know what to do._

_So, he sat, in a moved quiet._

That’s when mom started taking Error to a therapist.

Fresh looked up from his phone, gazing towards the bright afternoon sun, grinning to himself. He felt like today was going to finish off with something great.

He got on his skateboard, heading home. He was in such a good mood that he whistled for the entire journey. When he got into his apartment, he took off his jacket and shoes, placing them carefully to the side where he wouldn’t trip on them later, and sat down on his couch, taking out his phone. He frowned slightly before setting his phone aside and going to his refrigerator, taking out one of the glass bottles filled with water. He took a quick drink before setting it aside and laid down on the couch, finally able to check his phone.

He had a text.

He blinked and lifted his glasses, a sudden onslaught of worry and dread filling his soul. But as soon as he read it, his grin returned with a vengeance.

_What are you doing next Saturday? I want you to meet Ink._

Fresh sat back, placing his glasses aside, looking dopily up at the ceiling.

Today really had been rad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I was so excited to post this chapter that it got edited twice so that I had something to do instead of posting it. It's just a little side piece about one of my favorites, who may not get much time in the fic since he won't be paired with anyone. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed it! 
> 
> Next chapter should be posted around Wednesday next week, since I am off to visit my friends tomorrow and I won't have any time to really spend writing, since I must work on my thesis proposal and study for my exams in my downtime. When I get back I can work on the next chapter and not feel rushed or crazed. So I'll see you guys soon!


	12. A Cup of Coffee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reaper finally scores a date with Geno and Nightmare drowns his sorrows.

Ink woke up the next morning with his spine pressing into Error’s chest. Or rather, his spine was _being_ pressed into his chest. Error’s arms were wrapped around his ribcage, holding Ink tightly to himself. Not only that, but Error was curled in a ball around him, tucking the artist neatly inside his body’s cocoon. Ink let out a small, quiet laugh to himself. Who would have thought that Error would be the kind of guy to cuddle in his sleep?

He turned his head slightly, trying to get a glimpse of his sleeping beauty. He could make out a bit of the top of Error’s skull, and some of the blue streaks on his cheeks, but the rest he couldn’t really see. He had imagined that they would wake up facing each other, like in the movies, and Error would gently kiss him when their sleepy eyes met. Their current position wasn’t quite up to the standard of a romantic comedy that Ink had been expecting, but he decided it was still nice. He settled back down on the bed, enjoying the warmth his lover was providing.

He smiled to himself. Last night had been… great. He hadn’t been sure of himself in the aftermath. He had thought perhaps he had been pushing Error too quickly. After all, it was Ink who was always seemed to ask for more. He thought maybe he had rushed into things and had pressured Error. After talking with him last night, and reflecting on it this morning, Ink knew he hadn’t been pressuring him. Error was just hesitant to initiate anything. Once Ink had given him permission, Error had him seeing stars. He hoped his boyfriend would start feeling more comfortable starting things soon.

Finally, he couldn’t lay still any longer. He slowly peeled himself out of Error’s embrace and stepped out of bed. He stretched, feeling his vertebrae popping. He went to their little tent to gather his clothing, but when he went to grab his shirt he was struck with a brilliant idea. Instead of grabbing his, he took Error’s and scrambled to the bathroom.

As the bathroom door clicked shut, Error opened his eyes. He looked down at the empty spot next to him. The sheets were still warm, so he knew Ink hadn’t been gone for too long. He slowly sat up and leaned against the wall, seeing as how Ink’s bed didn’t have a headboard. He cracked his neck, sighing, and reached for his phone. He frowned. He must have left it in his jeans. He didn’t quite feel like leaving the bed just yet, so he leaned his head back and looked at the ceiling.

Two weeks ago, he wouldn’t have thought he would be laying in one of his neighbor’s beds, naked, after a night of sex. But it wasn’t even just sex. It was more than that, and that made Error uncomfortable, but in a good way. Ink had been right the night before, it was fast. Faster than Error would have ever imagined he would have been comfortable with. Ink was… something special. He had been prepared to hate him the moment he saw him. He was just… staring at him. Intensely. When he opened his door later that night, with Ink frowning up at him, declaring himself the hero of the day, Error had been struck.

He groaned softly.

He was in too deep, too soon, and he didn’t even care. Ink could probably ask him to move in tomorrow and he would agree. The logical part of him told him that wouldn’t be happening any time soon, seeing as how Ink literally moved into this apartment complex because he wanted to be on his own. Yet, if Ink asked…

Error shook his head. He needed to think clearly. There were steps you had to take when you started dating someone, weren’t there? He thought about it. The next logical step would be to introduce Ink to his brothers. He already knew Cross and Chara, and that was the extent of Error’s friend group, so his family was next. He couldn’t introduce Ink to his parents, really, since one was deceased, and his mom had run off with a younger man to the islands. Maybe he could video call his mom sometime with Ink. When he was ready. He would rather introduce Ink to Fresh ten million times before introducing him to his mother.  

“Error?”

Said skeleton looked up and immediately blushed.

Ink was standing in the doorway of the bathroom, Error’s shirt on and buttoned up to his neck. He was small enough that the shirt ended at the tops of his femurs. He grinned, watching Error’s reaction. His plan was working.

He moved to the bed and gently slipped between Error’s legs and sat there, his back once again to his boyfriend’s chest.

“I couldn’t find my shirt…” He lied softly.

“Oh…” Error breathed on his back of his neck, sending tingles down his spine.  Error gently wrapped his arms around him and buried his forehead into the crook of Ink’s neck. They stayed quiet for a few beats before Error spoke again.

“I want you to meet my brothers.”

Ink’s eyes widened in pleasant surprise, but he couldn’t help himself, as much as he wanted to be sweet in a moment like this. He laughed.

“One good fuck and you’re ready for me to meet the family? If that’s all it took, I would’ve done it sooner!” Ink laughed.

Error was two seconds away from pushing Ink off the bed entirely. He restrained himself.

“Two good fucks…” Error whispered and snaked his hand under Ink’s shirt, gently massaging his ribs. Ink’s laughter was cut short with a soft mewl.

“Error…” He shivered, toes curling.

Error gently kissed his neck as he began unbuttoning his shirt with his free hand. Ink shivered and sighed, pleased his plan was working. He made an unseemly noise when he felt Error’s multiple tongues begin to drag themselves over his neck and shoulder. Those tongues really were magic. Ink had gotten to see them in action the night before.

Error finally unbuttoned the last one and slid off the shirt. He pulled the shirt from around Ink and then…

He stood up, putting the shirt on himself.

Ink almost threw up.

“What? What about the second fuck?” He whined.

“That’s what you get for making fun of me for wanting you to meet my family.” Error shrugged.

“Oh, come on! I didn’t mean it!” Ink huffed, jumping up. “Please!” He tried to tug Error back to the bed.

“Isn’t that bed new? We wouldn’t want to ruin it.” Error tried to frown as he pulled his arm out of Ink’s grasp.

“Error!” Ink pleaded. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry! I take it back!”

Error was still putting on his pants, grinning to himself.

“What are you doing next Saturday?” He asked.

“Next Saturday?” Ink thought to himself. If he had anything planned, he couldn’t remember. Then again, if he did have something planned, he wouldn’t have remembered anyway. “Nothing.”

“Want to meet my brothers then?” Error asked, turning to look at the naked skeleton who had sat back down on the bed, face still in a pout. He had to restrain himself from giving Ink what he wanted. He was being punished, after all.

“Sure.” Ink grinned at him. “What’re we going to do?”

“I was thinking a picnic.” Error shrugged. “My apartment isn’t big enough for everyone, plus it’s supposed to be nice outside.” Fresh would enjoy being outside, he always had hated winter (though he’d never say it), and Geno was trapped in a hospital all the time. It’d be good for them to get outside.

“You should get dressed. We need to clean up this mess.”  Error turned back around. He couldn’t tease Ink and control himself when the guy was sitting naked on his bed.

“Error!” Ink cried in indignation.

“You don’t want these blankets to be dirty, do you?” Error peeked into the fort. “We really made a mess. These will have to be washed a few times. We better get started now.”

“I said I was sorry!”

 

* * *

 

Reaper was having a good day. The cafeteria was serving lemon meringue pie and an unfortunate car accident had taken place the night before and the corpses were particularly gruesome. He didn’t necessarily enjoy the fact that these people had suffered an unfortunate end, but he did enjoy variety in his work. Murders were his favorite, naturally, but they weren’t as common as people thought. So, he took the next best thing: accidents.

There was no doubt that these three friends met their untimely ends by something physical that happened when the cars collided. But where exactly was the final blow? Or perhaps it was internal bleeding. Were they drunk? High? The police said they had been going home from a party. He took tissue and bodily fluid samples for later analyzation. He assumed they were under the influence, but the substance would need to be determined for the police report and any later legal proceedings.

When he entered medical school, he wanted to be a normal pathologist. The guy who took samples from people and helped treat disease. However, over the course of his work with his cadaver, he learned he was extremely apt in working with corpses. Where his classmates were squeamish and uncomfortable, he was at home. In the beginning he had been uneasy. It was the first time he had come in contact with a true corpse. Anyone would be uncomfortable. But he handled it better than anyone else in the class. In fact, he became the top student for forensic pathology.

He finished closing the third body and he and his assistant slid it back into its designated cooler. The assistant gathered the samples, scurrying off to take them to the lab. Another pathologist would analyze them while the two of them took a break. She was probably going to go to the bathroom, throw up, and then get coffee from the break room to settle her stomach. And Reaper… Reaper was going to look for Geno.

He stripped off his gear, hanging them in their designated room before washing his hands and slipping on his hoodie and physician’s coat. Leaving the morgue always felt like emerging from the catacombs. The air was fresher, and the sounds were more comforting. The smell of death wasn’t as prominent out here, though he carried the scent with him.

“Hey Reaper.” One of the nurses greeted. He simply smiled and nodded, continuing his walk to the pediatric wing.

It was a good day when he got to perform an interesting autopsy, but it was a _great_ day when he got to see Geno.

It wasn’t infatuation at first sight. Not by a long shot. Reaper had first seen Geno when the residents were getting their first tour of the hospital. They all followed the head doctor like a paddling of ducks trailing a swan. They came into the break room as he was getting coffee. He noticed Geno first out of all of the other residents. Everyone in the room did. He had that giant glitch on his face. The pathologist was intrigued, if only because he wanted to figure out what it was. The young doctor noticed him staring and looked at him, frowning, then looking away quickly. His disgruntled face was cute, but once they left Reaper didn’t think about him again for weeks.

It had been a particularly rough day. The department was busy with pickups, they were short staffed since two mortuary assistants had to call out, and Reaper had to perform an autopsy on a child. Usually children didn’t die suddenly. It usually was from a long battle with disease or cancer and the parents generally elected to not have an autopsy performed. This one was different. The parents put their kid down for a nap and when they came back, she was gone.

The toddler had gotten up from bed and swallowed a toy. Alive one minute, dead the next.

Children always messed with Reaper. He wasn’t a cold soul. Teenagers, like the ones he had just performed on, were always sad, but children could be devastating. He always found his name ironic, but he hated it when he needed to sign an autopsy report of a child.

He had left the morgue, a proverbial black cloud hanging over him. Even his usually lit eyelight was gone, giving him two empty sockets instead of one. He was going to go to the little garden they had on the pediatric floor, where kids could get out and get some sunshine. He wanted some fresh air and to remind himself that there were children out there, recovering and going home to their parents’ warm arms.

He emerged in the garden, taking in a deep breath of the city air. Thankfully the garden was enclosed by glass walls so the kids couldn’t fall, but the ceiling was open to allow air in. He sat on one of the benches and looked up towards the sky. White fluffy clouds floated past. He wondered, briefly, if there was an afterlife.

“Dr. Geno!” A small voice cried.

Reaper sighed, sockets still trying to follow the clouds. He hoped there was an afterlife. Just for that little girl.

“Look at the seeds I planted! They’re gonna be carrots!”

Reaper finally turned his head back to Earth, wanting to see the lively child. He followed her with his skull, watching her pull the glitchy resident doctor over to one of the small garden beds.

“Wow! You did that all by yourself?” The resident asked, leaning in to inspect the child’s works.

“Uh-huh! But I won’t be here to see them grow…” She pouted, frowning down at the soil.

“You gotta go home and see your puppy. When you come back to get your checkup you can check on them.” Geno offered, squatting down next to her, smiling. “Don’t you want to see Rylie?”

“Yeah! But…” She frowned sadly, looking back to the bed. “But… what if they don’t grow?” She whispered.

“You grew, didn’t you?” Geno asked softly. She pouted and nodded. “Just like you, they’re really strong. And just like you, with care and nurture, they’ll grow up. They’ll be watered and looked after, getting special attention to make them strong.”

“Will you take care of them?” She asked.

“Of course! I’ll give them the same care I’ve given you.” Geno grinned. She grinned back, hopping up.

“Thanks Dr. Geno!” She cried and threw her arms around him.

Reaper stared, his sockets wide. That’s when it hit him. The sickness. He had come down with a bad case of Geno fever. He felt his eye light again.

It might have just been the timing. It could have been he was having a bad day because of a child, and Geno was being cute with another kid. Whatever it was, he became obsessed. He didn’t approach Geno for a few weeks, but when he did, he hadn’t been able to leave him alone.

Reaper picked up his pace, taking the stairs two at a time. He needed a good dose of Geno. He only saw him once yesterday. And then, he couldn’t even talk to him. He at least tried not to disturb the young doctor when he was working. But today, he wasn’t going to care.

He got lucky.

He turned the corner and spotted Geno right away. He started walking towards him, trying to calm his breathing. His target was standing to the side, looking over a chart. The perfect environment to go in for a kill.

Before he could reach him, Geno looked up, and smiled, actually smiled, at _him._

“Ah, Reaper! I was meaning to talk to you.” Geno said as he set the chart back down. He came towards him, meeting Reaper in midway.

“…” Reaper paused. “You were… looking for me?” He asked, not being able to mask the surprise on his face.

“Yeah.” A blush crept onto Geno’s cheeks. “I uh… wanted…”

Reaper was finally able to snap out of it. He grinned and leaned in.

“You wanted…?” He prompted. Geno looked away.

“I wanted… to say…” Geno began to fidget. Reaper simply waited, not even blinking.

“I wanted to tell you that I’d like to…” Another paused. “Take you up on that… offer.”

Reaper grinned, trying his best not to show his excitement.

“What offer?” He wanted to hear Geno say it.

Geno glared back at him.

“You know what offer.” He hissed.

“You want to borrow my pen?” Reaper asked, reaching towards his chest pocket.

“No! I want to go on a date with you!” Geno cried. People turned and looked at the pair, some of the nurses giggling. Geno looked horrified and quickly looked away, taking a step back. Reaper just let out a low laugh.

“Oh? Is that it?” Reaper grinned. “When?”

“When?” Geno blinked.

“When do you want to go out?” Reaper stepped forward, leaning in again.

“Um… I don’t know… I have Saturdays and Wednesdays off…”

“What about Saturday then?”

“Saturday I’m meeting my brother’s boyfriend…” Geno frowned at the floor.

“What about the next Saturday?” Reaper was a bit disappointed, but he was going to actually take Geno out on a date, so he couldn’t complain.

“I’m free then.” Geno finally looked back at him and gave him a sheepish smile.

 “It’s a date.”

 

* * *

 

Nightmare was in a mood.

He had been in this mood ever since he had found out Cross had approached Dream.

Not even just approached him but _kissed_ him.

 Dream had texted him the night it happened.

Ever since, Nightmare had been in this mood.

There was no way to accurately describe the mood. On the one hand, he was happy for Dream. He had found someone he was somewhat interested in who took his mind off the Ink bastard. (If Nightmare was the type, he might have tried to kick Ink’s ass for what he did to Dream. But he was above that kind of violence.)

On the other hand, Nightmare was not only jealous, but he was heartbroken.

He had tried to deny it to himself. There was no way that Dream could have met Cross in such a random way, so haphazardly. But there was only one Cross he knew of who was friends with a guy named Error. When Dream showed him a picture of his Undernet profile, he felt the crushing weight of rejection seep into his very soul. All that time he had been flirting with Cross had been for nothing. The worst part was when he realized that all those longing gazes hadn’t been directed at him, but at his brother, his own flesh and blood.

When Dream had told him that they were going to get lunch together, which wasn’t technically a date but kind of was, Nightmare had lost it. All of his emotions culminated into white hot rage that had spilled out when he had confronted Cross. Even that Error freak had felt it and ran in the other direction.

He laughed in Cross’s face, belittled him. Lied to him.

What good would telling the fool his feelings do? It was obvious he had been interested in Dream. It was obvious that he had been looking straight through him.

So, Nightmare did the only thing he really knew to do in situations like these. He drank.

There was a little coffee shop he frequented. He normally only went once a week, on poetry night, but this week he had been there every day after classes. He drank cup after cup of black coffee, writing poems in his notebook. Heartbreak was a bitch, but at least he was gaining inspiration from it. He felt like an angsty teenager, writing poems about his love that never even happened.

Today was an especially bad day. Dream had just texted him that Cross asked him out on a proper date. They were going to go to a movie. How. Adorable.

He pushed open the door with vehemence, his face set in a grimace.

“Welcome!” Called the barista, a small skeleton that managed the place on his own.

Nightmare quickly glanced around. This café was different than others in that it offered something he desperately needed at the moment.

Cats.

The place was crawling with them. All but one of them was up for adoption. It was sponsored by one of the local rescues. Nightmare couldn’t have any pets, and he usually went to Dream’s to play with his cat when he was down, but he couldn’t look at his brother right now.

“Sansy!” The barista called, knowing exactly who Nightmare was looking for. When no cat appeared, the small skeleton frowned. “He was just here… Let me go find him.”

The café was surprisingly empty, but it might have been the time of day. Everyone was at work this time in the morning.

The barista came back, carrying the pudgy cat who looked like he was grinning, with odd, blue hued stripes.

“Say hi, Sansy!” The barista gently moved the cat’s paw up and down as if he were waving. He started talking again, this time changing his voice slightly, as if the cat were speaking, “You look like you’re having a rough day. Ccino’ll get your usual while you cuddle me!”

Sansy was thrust into his arms as Ccino moved back behind the counter, grabbing a porcelain mug and filling it with his strongest brew. Nightmare dug in his pocket, pulling out his wallet and laying a five-dollar bill on the counter while balancing the cat, who was surprisingly relaxed the whole time. He sat down in a corner table, cradling the cat like a baby.

Ccino set his mug in front of him.

“Just let me know when you need a refill.” He smiled before walking back behind the counter.

Nightmare watched him briefly before turning back to the cat, rubbing underneath his chin. Sansy purred, that stupid grin still on his face. When his frustration had finally lowered to a tolerable level, he put Sansy back on the ground, watching the cat saunter off to who knows where. He pulled out his notebook and a pen.

He was going to start yet another poem about his unrequited love for the idiot, when he stopped himself. He was writing too much about this, stewing in his own sadness. He decided he needed another muse. He paused briefly to think, then started a poem about the cat as a warmup. It could not be considered a good poem, but it was a good first poem of the day. But now, he needed something else to write about.

He wrote a short poem about the café. It was worse than the one about the cat. Perhaps he needed to write about a living thing. His poems about Cross were pretty good, and the one about the cat was decent. He sighed, staring into his empty coffee cup while he thought.

“Here you go.” Ccino smiled gently as he filled Nightmare’s cup again. Nightmare mumbled a word of thanks before Ccino walked off again.

He decided to write about the cat-loving barista.

It took him quite a while to finish it. Ccino had come at least five times to refill his mug when he saw it was empty, even if the café had gotten busy. Ccino had been giving him special attention that week. It would have been flattering had he not known that Ccino was simply picking up on his melancholy. Like calls to like, he supposed.

It was one of his better poems. Reading back through it, he figured it might be good enough for him to actually read it one poetry night. He had always been too nervous to sign up, but this might be the one. He glanced back up, watching the small barista flit between tables, filling mugs and laughing with patrons. Nightmare could tell it was almost all an act.

For the first time that week, he was feeling a bit better. He put his things away and took his cup to the tub set out for dirty dishes. He paused, briefly thinking he should say goodbye to his muse but decided against it. He walked out the door, glancing behind him to see Ccino watching him go, gently waving him a goodbye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A wild Ccino appears! 
> 
> As always, thank you guys for reading! Every comment, view, and kudo makes me smile!


	13. Movie Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the help of Cross, Dream can finally say what he feels.

Dream stood in front of his bathroom mirror, turning ever so slightly to inspect himself from every angle. He had dressed for the occasion: his favorite orange shirt, paired with a cardigan and jeans. Cross was going to pick him up and had left Dream specific, and somewhat cryptic, instructions.

_“I’ll pick you up.” Cross had said, after Dream agreed to go to the movie with him that Friday. “Just text me your address.”_

_“Okay… You have a car?” Dream had asked, curious._

_“I have a ride…” Cross paused, thoughtful. “Make sure to wear jeans and closed-toe shoes.”_

Dream blinked down at his feet. He was wearing his best set of tennis shoes, since he wasn’t exactly sure what Cross had meant by that. Were they not going to just the movies? He tried not to feel giddy at the chance of there being a surprise. Maybe they would go to mini-golf. He loved going. However, Ink always said it was for kids, Blue got too competitive for it to be enjoyable, and Nightmare didn’t do too many outdoorsy-things. If mini-golf could even be considered outdoorsy.

He sighed and checked his phone. Cross was going to pick him up at six and it was…

Five.

Another sigh.

He wasn’t supposed to be excited. He was supposed to let Cross distract him from his aching heart. He tapped his finger on the counter. What else could he do to get ready? His eyes searched for something, anything, on the counter to help him. They landed on his toothbrush. Of course! He could brush his teeth so that when he and Cross ki-

He shook the thought out of his head and scolded himself in the mirror,

“Stop it, Dream. This doesn’t mean anything. You’re still not over Ink. Pull yourself together.” He frowned at his reflection.

What if he was over Ink? His frown deepened. He wasn’t. He knew that.

But what if he was ready to want to be over Ink?

The revelation made him pause. He smiled.

He was ready to want to forget Ink.

He picked up his toothbrush and toothpaste, scrubbing at his teeth.

Maybe one little kiss wouldn’t hurt.

After he finished brushing his teeth, he left the bathroom and went to sit down on the couch Ink used to sleep on those last couple of months. Oh Ink…

He felt guilty for not even texting Ink once since that fateful Friday night. He wanted to still be in his life but… Ink hadn’t text him either. Maybe Ink was giving him his space, but Dream knew that wasn’t true. He knew Ink like the back of his hand. Ink hadn’t thought of him once since Error came into his life.

He felt tears well in his eyes, but he quickly rubbed them away. He was waiting for his date to get here, so he needed to be happy. A date that wasn’t Ink. And Cross wasn’t like Ink at all.

Cross was serious and stoic, or so he seemed at first glance. Dream knew there was more going on underneath his exterior, but he wasn’t sure what. Nightmare said he knew him from anime club, of all places, and that he hung out with one of the security guards on campus that loved anime as well. They got really into the anime, Night had said, and acted like, in Night’s exact words, “an idiot and an imbecile at their wedding.”

Dream laughed at the remembered quip. He wished Cross was comfortable enough with him to show him that side. He knew it was because Cross was nervous around him. Maybe if Dream acted silly tonight, Cross would open up with him.

The little skeleton hummed to himself, checking his phone again. Five forty-five. He had fifteen minutes till Cross was going to be here, though he figured Cross would be a little late since it was his first time coming to his apartment and it always took people a little while to find it.

He looked around his living room as he continued to hum. He could redecorate the place, now that Ink had moved out. Technically, Ink wouldn’t care what decorations he got, but he would paint them, draw on them, or otherwise try to “improve” them, so Dream had just stopped trying. He frowned in thought. What should he get? He was thinking of a large print of his cat…

His phone buzzed. It was Cross.  

_I’m outside._

Dream looked at the time. The guy was ten minutes early. He laughed, a soft golden dust gracing his cheeks. Early. Not late. Or really late. _Not like Ink._

_Coming._ He sent back and stood.

Sunshine meowed from her spot on the cat tree.

“You have food!” Dream sighed. “Just be a good kitty until I get back, ‘kay?”

The cat meowed again and looked away, as if sticking her nose in the air. Dream sighed and left his apartment, locking it up and heading down the stairs.

He grinned when he spotted Cross, looking handsome in a leather jacket trimmed in white fur, dark jeans, black riding boots, and leaning against a…

“Motorcycle?” Dream asked meekly, looking at the vehicle. Cross blinked and looked behind him.

“My ride.” He said simply and shrugged. He extended a helmet to Dream. “You look nice.”

“Y-you do too…” Dream timidly took the helmet and put it on his skull, buckling it and tightening the strap. “I-I’ve never ridden a m-motorcycle before…”

Cross studied him, face unreadable.

“You’ll be fine. Just hang onto me.” He clipped on his own helmet before moving to straddle the bike. “Get on behind me and wrap your arms around my waist.”

Dream slowly did as he was told, timidly holding onto Cross around his lower ribs, heart racing.

The engine roared to life and Cross gave the engine a few good revs. Before he could get his bearings, Cross sped off, throwing him back. He yelped, quickly wrapping his arms tighter around the driver.

“Cross!” He yelled, almost scolding. He closed his eyes tightly, burying his head into Cross’s back. “Cross slow down!”

Dream could feel Cross’s chest heaving. He opened one eye timidly, only to see Cross looking over his shoulder, laughing at him.

“I’m going the speed limit!” Cross shouted over the noise before looking back to the road.

Dream’s only response was to squeeze his arms around him, yelling into his back.

He praised the stars when they reached the little theater and Cross parked the death trap that somehow got them to their venue. He stepped off with shaky legs, though his date was there to help him, offering him his hand and pulling him up.

“I could have died!” Dream scolded once he was completely rid of the motorcycle and his helmet.

“But you didn’t.” Cross offered. Dream pouted. Cross was right.

“Okay, but you told me you had a car!” He tried again.

“I said I had a ride.” Cross shrugged. Dream let out a whine. Cross had him there too.

“It was really scary…” Dream whispered and looked away.

Cross looked down at him softly. He gently placed his head on the top of Dream’s skull, rubbing slightly.

“Sorry. I should have warned you.”

Dream looked up at him and gave him a soft smile.

“I guess I can forgive you…” He murmured. Cross gave him the tiniest of smiles in return.

“Do you want to go pick a movie?” He asked, dropping his hand. Dream hesitantly reached forward and took his hand, earning a blush from the other skeleton.

“Okay… Anything I choose? You kind of owe me for that.”

“Hm…” Cross thought while they walked towards the box office. “Anything but the new dog movie that’s out.”

Dream gasped.

“But that’s the one I wanted to see! It looks so cute and wholesome…” He pouted again.

“And sad. All dog movies are sad. I don’t want you to be sad tonight.” Cross shrugged again. They stopped in front of the movie listings.

“…Okay… I guess not the dog movie…” Dream grumbled, looking over the showings. He was so out of the loop that he had no idea what was showing. There was an animated movie that looked a bit too silly, an action movie but he wasn’t in the mood, some superhero movie that he hadn’t seen the first three so that was out, and…

“How about the romantic comedy? Those have to end happily, right?” He suggested, looking up at Cross, who had been watching him carefully.

“Whatever you want.” Cross shrugged.

“Okay, it’s what I want.” He said definitively. Cross pulled them over to the ticket counter.

“Two for Soul Mates.” Cross said to the young monster sitting behind the glass wall.

“Two Soul Mates. Coming right up.” The teenager began to type into his computer, though he kept glancing up. He looked from Dream to Cross, Cross to Dream. Dream tried to read him and giggled to himself.

The kid was confused why someone like him would be with someone like Cross. Dream, who was (usually) all smiles and a happy aura, and Cross, who looked like he could murder someone with just a look. It was not unlike the reaction he got when he told people he and Nightmare were twins.

“Do you want snacks?” Cross asked when they entered the lobby after leaving the ticket counter.

“Yep!” Dream chirped, following after his date as he led them to the concession stand.

“What do you want?” Cross asked. Dream was feeling a bit guilty, since Cross was paying for everything, but he had insisted so Dream decided to get at least one thing.

“Just popcorn, I guess.” Dream smiled. Cross watched him for a minute.

“Is that it?” He asked. Dream faltered.

“Well, I kind of wanted gummies but…” Dream looked over the selections. “I think these all have gelatin in them…”

Cross simply nodded and ordered them a popcorn to share. He loaded it with butter while Dream continued to tell him to add more.

Once they sat down in their seats, Cross opened his jacket and pulled out a small packet, offering it to Dream.

“Here.” He mumbled. Dream looked at him curiously before taking it. “What…?”

He looked down, turning the package in his hands. It was a small bag of red, fish-shaped gummies with a large seal labeling it as vegan in the corner.

“You brought these?” He asked quietly. Cross was looking straight ahead at the screen, avoiding his eyes. “…how did you…?”

Cross finally looked at him, his face almost completely purple.

“I knew that some candies have gelatin in them, and that vegetarians don’t eat them, and I thought, ‘what if Dream wants gummies but they don’t have any at the theater?’ so I went to this specialty grocery store by my apartment and asked someone to help me-"

Cross’s rambling was cut short as Dream leaned forward and gently pecked his cheek.

“Thanks, Cross. That’s really thoughtful of you.” He smiled sheepishly, blushing a bit himself.

Cross stared at him, his eyes wide and jaw a bit slack. Dream squirmed in his seat, unsure of himself. Luckily for him, the lights dimmed.

“The movie’s starting…” He whispered and Cross finally closed his mouth and turned back to face the screen. Dream shyly slid his hand into Cross’s lap, lacing their fingers together once more.

* * *

 

“Are you hungry?” Cross asked as they exited the theater, hands still linked.

“I could eat.” Dream smiled as he gently swung their arms back and forth. The movie had been better than he was expecting, and Cross had seemed so engrossed in it that he had enjoyed watching him as well.

“What do you want?” Cross stopped in front of his ‘ride.’ Dream tried not to grimace at the sight.

“Um… Mexican?” He offered, still eyeing the motorcycle warily. He flicked his golden eyes up to catch Cross grinning at him. “What?”

“You’re…” Cross stumbled over himself, his grin fading. “You’re cute… Anyway, I know a place.”

 

* * *

 

The entire ride to the restaurant, Dream had his head buried into Cross’s back, arms wrapped so tightly around Cross’s ribs that they would’ve cracked if they hit a pothole the wrong way. The place turned out to be a little hole in the wall taco shop with only a few tables inside. It was late for regular diners, but early for drunks, so they were able to snag one of the tables.

Dream took a bite of one of his vegetarian tacos and his eyelights warped into stars.

“You weren’t kidding!” He exclaimed, looking to Cross who stared at him, stunned. “These are delicious!” He quickly took another bite.

Cross gaped at him, staring at Dream’s eyes. It was the first time he had seen Dream’s eyes change. He hadn’t even known they could. Error had told him Ink’s eyes changed to stars when he was excited, but he hadn’t expected Dream to do the same thing.

“Uh… Yeah. It’s a good place…” He breathed, still watching Dream greedily bite into his taco. At this rate, Dream was going to finish his tacos before Cross, which would be a record.

Dream beat the record.

He sighed happily and sat back in his chair, satisfied. His eyes had shifted back to their normal spheres. He smiled contentedly across the table at Cross who was just finishing his last bite.

“Thanks for bringing me here… It was really good…” Dream smiled gently. He felt refreshed.

“You’re welcome… Dream?” Cross asked.

“Hm?” Dream asked, his eyelids heavy,

“Why did your eyes…?”

“Oh! You saw that?” The little skeleton asked. Cross nodded. “That happens sometimes when I get excited… I don’t know why or how… It just does.” He laughed and shrugged.

“Error says Ink’s do the same thing…” Cross was too mesmerized to realize his slip.

Dream frowned, looking at the table.

“Yeah, they do.” He said curtly. Cross blinked.

“Er… Sorry, for bringing him up… I didn’t really mean to…” He rubbed the back of his neck. Dream sighed.

“It’s okay… I know he’s going to come up… He’s dating your friend after all.” Dream started to draw on the table with his finger, using the condensation from his drink as paint. “As long as he’s happy… I’m okay.”

“You’re not okay.”

Dream looked up sharply, still frowning.

“How would you know? You barely know me!” He spat, then his eyes widened. “I’m sorry, Cross, I-I didn’t mean it…”

Cross looked at him calmly.

“You meant it.” He said softly. “You just didn’t mean it at me.”

“What does that mean?” Dream asked sadly. He really did hate that he snapped at Cross, who was only trying to help.

“You might have meant the words, but you didn’t mean the anger behind them. That was for someone else.” Cross gave a soft smile. Dream instantly relaxed, Cross’s smile reassuring him.

“I shouldn’t be mad at him… He did me a favor by telling me… He… That he…” He took in a shaky breath. “That he never loved me.” He looked back at the table, trying to hold back. He had already cried once in front of Cross.

“He didn’t do you a favor. He hurt you. You should be mad about that.” Cross offered calmly. Dream frowned, though it looked more like a pout.

“You shouldn’t be talking about your friend’s boyfriend like that.”

“Error’s not my priority.”

Dream shrank in his seat, hunching his shoulders, a mixture of emotions stirring inside him. He was both upset and flattered at Cross’s words.

“What am I supposed to do, then? Anger doesn’t solve anything… I’m still hurt and he’s still… With someone else.” He looked away.

“You let the anger out. You can’t keep inside. It’ll only hurt you.” Cross watched him gently.

“How? I don’t know what to do…”

“I usually punch someone.” Cross shrugged. Dream frowned.

“Do I look like someone who would want to punch someone else because I’m angry?”

“No. I have another idea.” Cross stood up and offered his hand to Dream. “You need to trust me.”

Dream hesitated, but only for a second before he grabbed Cross’s hand and pulled himself out of his seat.

“Am I going to regret this?” He asked. 

“No. You’ll feel better.”

 

* * *

 

Dream shouldn’t have trusted him.

They were back on the death machine, only this time, Cross was not going the speed limit and was speeding through downtown and trying to get him to peel his head away from his spine. Dream was shaking his head furiously into Cross’s jacket, refusing.

“Come on!” Cross shouted. “Just for a minute! You said you were gonna trust me!”

“I trust you!” He called back. “But not this thing!”

“Trust in my faith in it! You’ll be fine! I promise!”

Finally, Dream opened his eyes one by one. Slowly, he pulled back so he could see the buildings and cars whizzing by. He wanted to dive back into safety, but he gritted his teeth and hung on, finally deciding to trust Cross.

“Okay! Now what?!” He asked.

“Yell, ‘Fuck you Ink!’”

“I can’t do that!”

“Why?”

“Someone will hear!”

“ _I_ can barely hear you!” Cross paused. “Like this,”

“FUCK YOU INK!” He yelled. Dream cried out at the sound, shame creeping up on his cheeks. He couldn’t believe Cross had actually done it. “FUCK YOU INK!” Cross yelled again. This time, it wasn’t so bad.

“Fuck you…” Dream said softly.

“Can’t hear you!” Cross called.

“Fuck. You.” Dream said a little louder.

“Louder!” His driver demanded.

“FUCK YOU!” Dream yelled.

“Fuck who?!” Cross asked.

“FUCK YOU INK!” Dream got out, grinning slightly. “FUCK YOU INK!” It felt good. “FUCK YOU INK!”

He repeated his incantation over and over, beginning to laugh like a madman. Cross cheered him on, prompting him to get louder and louder each and every time. And Dream tried his best. He was screaming by the time they entered his neighborhood and he only stopped yelling as they pulled up to his apartment building. Cross had been right. He felt a lot better. He was able to get off the motorcycle all on his own this time, legs steady. He felt like he almost had some kind of renewed strength. He pulled off his helmet, looking at Cross with stars in his eyes once again.

“Feel that good, huh?” Cross asked, a lazy grin on his face. Dream nodded happily.

“I feel… so much better.” Dream smiled up at him. “Thank you, Cross. For everything.”

“No problem.” Cross gently pat his head again. “Let’s do this again sometime… And if you need to let off steam, we can always go for a ride.”

Dream nodded.

“Okay… And Cross?”

“Yeah?”

Dream gently pulled on his jacket, bringing Cross down to his level, and kissed him softly. 

“Good night.”

 

* * *

 

“Achoo!”

Ink sneezed, his hand dragging the pencil softly across the paper, a line now through his latest sketch.

“Someone’s talking about you.” Error looked up from his computer. They were at his apartment again, him working on school work while Ink laid on his couch, sketching.

“Maybe…” Ink set his things down. “Are you ready for a break? I’m bored.” He huffed. “I’m hungry… Really hungry.”

“Nope, I still have a lot of work to do before I can take a break.” Error didn’t look up.

“Error!” Ink cried. “It’s been a week! I said I was sorry!”

Error sighed. He wouldn’t have kept this going so long if Ink wasn’t so damn cute when he whined like that.

“Fine.” He huffed and pushed away from his desk.

“Really?” Ink grinned, quickly putting his things on the coffee table. He watched Error move around the couch and… put on his jacket. “What?” He blinked.

“You’re hungry, right? Let’s go get something. There’s a really good sandwich shop down the street.” Error tried to hand Ink his own coat.

“Error.” Ink pouted. “I’m not that kind of hungry…”

“Oh?” Error asked. “What kind of hungry are you?”

“You know what kind.”

“Thai? We can just order that, and I can keep working.”

“Error!” Ink cried. “This is getting ridiculo-“

Error kissed him softly, pressing him back into the couch.

“What kind of hungry are you?” He asked again, pulling back so he could watch Ink’s face. The artist blushed, trying to avert his gaze but found it near impossible to look away from Error when he looked so needy.

“I’m hungry… for you.” He whispered.

“Why didn’t you say so earlier?” Error gently pushing Ink so that he was laying down. “If I knew, I would’ve gotten you something to eat sooner.”

“Fuck me, Error.”

“Wow.” Error pulled back. “That was so unsexy… Looks like it’s another week until you get fed.”

“What?! That wasn’t even that bad! At least I didn’t say that I wanted to eat you out.”

“Two weeks!”

“Error! Error, please!”

“Fine… But only because you're cute.”

“… _Can_ I eat you out?”

“Ink!”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	14. A Lazy Picnic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ink gets to meet Error's brothers and Reaper gets coffee.

The following morning, Ink did get his fairytale wake-up.

Sort of.

He awoke to Error gently stroking his cheekbone, looking down at him softly. Ink smiled gently, reaching up sleepily to embrace him.

“Error…”

“We’re running late.” Error stated, still looking down at him. Ink realized that his boyfriend was fully dressed, freshly showered, and simply waiting on him. He sighed softly and pouted, grasping that he had slept through Error waking up. Someday… Someday he’d get that perfect, romantic start to the day.

“Right… your brothers…” Ink sat up, stretching. “Let me just put on my clothes…” He rubbed his eyes sleepily.

“You should probably shower and put on new ones.” Error offered, standing up to his full height.

“Want me to make a good impression?” The artist grinned. “Do you want to pick out my clothes too?”

“No.” Error huffed. “You dress better than me anyway… There’s just…” He glanced at Ink’s clothes, which were haphazardly tossed around the apartment. “They’re just… messy.” His cheeks colored. Ink grinned impishly. He couldn’t help himself. Error’s prudishness was too easy of a target.

“You mean you got your cu-“

“Ink!” Error hissed, face brightening. “They’re just messy.”

“Messy from all your ji-“

“Stop!”

“Don’t be shy, Error. You can’t help that I was _so_ good you couldn’t control yourself.” Ink slowly leaned in. “If you’d like, we can do a repeat right now…” He raised his browbones suggestively.

“Shower. Now.” Error spat, yanking Ink up from the bed and pushing him towards the shower.

“Aw, Error. You’re so embarrassed… Like a teenager…” Ink laughed as the bathroom door was shut on him.

“Just shower!” Error yelled through the door.

Ink laughed again before turning to start the shower. His first-time using Error’s shower. He could have easily just gone down the hall and used his own, but he supposed Error wanted to shut him up as soon as possible. Error was so cute when he was flustered. He hadn’t been expecting Ink to take over, but in Ink’s defense he had been _starving._

He turned on the shower and when it was warm, got in. He took his time, smelling each and everything he put on his body, trying to find Error’s scent. He couldn’t pinpoint it, so he guessed it might have been his laundry detergent. He would have to poke around some more in his lover’s apartment to figure it out. Maybe steal one of Error’s shirts. Anything could happen.

Error moved around the apartment in a nervous flurry, making the bed (though the sheets needed to be washed), fixing the couch cushions, placing his TV remote just so on the coffee table, picking up Ink’s clothes, folding Ink’s clothes…. Blushing at his mess all over Ink’s clothes.

Ink had surprised him. Without warning, he flung himself at Error like a ravenous tiger towards its prey. He hardly had any time to react before Ink was straddling him, his mouth working on his neck. As Ink removed his clothing, he moved down his body, he elicited the most sensual of sounds from the dark skeleton. Error was embarrassed, of course, and he feared a reboot might be coming but… While he was surprised, he wasn’t _uncomfortable._ If it was Ink, it was okay.

Before he realized it, Ink was between his thighs, feasting. That’s when Error made a mess. An unsightly mess that was a testament to his unseemly, needy rendezvous with his partner. But Ink wasn’t done.

_“Whoops. Guess I went a little overboard.” Ink laughed and looked down at his clothes. “I should probably get rid of these.” He peeled his clothes off and threw them aside without care. Error simply watched him, unable to move. Ink had done his job well._

How they ended up on the bed to finish was a mystery to Error. One minute they were kissing, Ink’s hand still moving with him, the next he was being pushed into his headboard.

Anytime he thought about it, he was embarrassed. Embarrassed that he had _liked it._ And the clown had to keep bringing it up this morning. He groaned. He stood, inspecting the couch, sighing in relief. They hadn’t gotten anything on it. He didn’t even know how to get that kind of thing out of furniture fabric. He couldn’t just throw the couch in the washing machine. How would he have explained that to Cross?

Which got him wondering about his friend’s date the night before. Which got him thinking about how he and Ink hadn’t actually gone out anywhere since their first date. Which made him feel a bit guilty. Which made him start to think of a good time to take Ink out again… But after last night, he felt like Ink should be taking him out. Damn.

“Error?”

He looked to the bathroom door. Ink was standing in the doorway, steam billowing out behind him, naked aside from a towel wrapped around his head. Error opened his mouth to comment but was stopped short.

“Can I borrow some clothes so I can go back to my apartment?” He asked. Error gently gestured towards the towel. Ink followed with his eyes before laughing. “Oh, right!” He unwrapped the towel moved it around his hips.

“What about my top though?” He asked, tilting his head. He tried not to smile, hoping his plan would work.

Error sighed dramatically and went to his closet, pulling out one of his old T-shirts.

“Here.” He said. Ink took it and slipped it over his head. He took in a deep, quiet breath through his nose. It had the perfect amount of Error-smell. Fantastic.

Error handed him his clothes. “Take these back too.”

“Aw, you folded them.” Ink cooed. “You take such good care of me…” He grinned and pointed to one of the small stains on his dirty shirt. “Look, it’s you.”

“Get out!” Error huffed and pushed him towards the door. “Come back when you’re dressed.”

“Fiiiiine. I’ll stop with the jokes. Maybe.” Ink laughed as the door was slammed behind him.

* * *

 

The train ride to Waterfall Village was packed. No seats were available, so Error held onto one of the overhead handles. Ink took full advantage of the opportunity and wrapped his arms around Error’s chest, hanging on for dear life. He tilted his head up, watching Error cringe and blush every time Ink had to grip tighter.

“Man, if I knew this is how you’d act the day after, I would have done _that_ sooner.” He grinned.

“I thought you said you were going to stop with the jokes.” Error groaned.

“Did I say that? I don’t remember.” Ink shrugged.

“Don’t use your disability for your own gain. Besides, I can tell when you really mean it.” Error sighed. Ink blinked.

“How could you tell?” He asked.

Error grimaced and closed his eyes as the train stopped and the doors opened, people brushing against him in the mad scramble to get in and out in time. When the train was moving again, he opened his eyes and answered.

“I can’t tell you exactly, but your eyes seem different and your body kind of tenses… It’s really… all of you.” Error shrugged.

“That’s good to know, but I meant…” Ink blinked. “How did you know it was… something?”

Error looked down at him softly.

“I know what you meant. It’s the same.” Another shrug. “At first, it just seemed like genuine forgetfulness. It’s… kind of endearing.” He blushed softly. “It was when you called me about the trains… You sounded so…” He shook his head slightly. “I’m not good with words. You were really upset. Someone who’s just scatterbrained wouldn’t freak out that much about the _possibility_ of forgetting. That’s why I started looking up ways to try and help.”

“You said you had memory problems too.” Ink pouted, a soft flush on his cheeks. Even though he was a bit upset about Error’s little lie, he couldn’t help but feel flattered.

“I do. But that’s just forgetfulness.” Error grinned and leaned down, kissing Ink on the forehead.

“I guess that’s pretty high on the Error Scale of Affection?” Ink smiled.

“Ugh.” Error rolled his eyes, then glanced back down at him. “It’s kind of off the charts.” He winked.

Ink’s soul flipped but before he could react, the train stopped.

“Let’s go. They’re waiting for us.”

 

* * *

 

Geno frowned, looking down at the blankets he had laid on the grass, scrutinizing them.

“They could be straighter…” He grumbled and bent down to tug on one of the corners.

“Ya don’t gotta keep fixin’ ‘em.” Fresh grinned at him. “They’re perfect tha way they are.”

“Ugh.” Geno rolled his eye. “It could be better though! And what if he doesn’t eat sandwiches?! I should have made something else. Oh stars! What if he doesn’t eat meat?! Or gluten!? What if I didn’t bring anything he can eat?!”

“Calm down.” Fresh gently placed a hand on Geno’s shoulder. “I told ya, he seems rad.”

“I know, I know… But what if…” Geno sighed, then his eye widened. “Stars! They’re here!” He flashed a grin to the two skeletons walking towards them. He gave a soft wave. “Aw, they’re holding hands.” He sighed, forgetting his anxiety for a brief moment.

Fresh waved as well.

“He doesn’t look like someone Error would date.” Geno sighed.

“Chara didn’t either.” His youngest brother offered just before the couple reached their blankets.

“Hi Error! Hi…” Geno waited for Ink’s official introduction. Error sighed.

“Geno, this is Ink.” Error gestured. “Ink, this is Geno. Fresh, Ink. Ink, Fresh.”

Geno enthusiastically shook Ink’s hand while Fresh only gave him another round of finger guns.

“I’ve heard so mu-… I’ve heard about you!” Geno said happily.

“I’ve heard almost nothing about you guys. Nice to meet you, though!” Ink chirped.

Geno gave Error a small look and Error simply shrugged it off.

“You never come up.” He tried.

“How about lunch? I made sandwiches.” Geno smiled, his eye slightly wider than usual as he waited for Ink’s response.

“Sandwiches?” Ink asked. “I love sandwiches! Thanks!” He grinned.

Fresh grinned, turning to Geno, his glasses scrawled with ‘ _Told You.’_

“Woah, his glasses just changed.” Ink muttered under his breath.

“Magic.” Error said, bending down to whisper in his ear, “You should try to say a cuss word.”

Ink’s eyes flashed question marks, but Error was already moving to sit on the blanket. Ink plopped down next to him, making sure to sit as close as possible. Error blushed again. Looking away.

Geno and Fresh exchanged smiles.

“Here. I made a lot of a lot of different ones since I didn’t know what you liked.” Geno pulled out a large lunch tote, filled to the brim with different varieties of sandwiches, each placed in their own plastic bag and labelled with a marker.

“Ooh, peanut butter and jelly!” Ink quickly reached in, scooping up a bag.

“Five-year-old...” Geno whispered, stunned.

“Hm?” Ink asked around his first bite.

“Nothing.” Geno grinned and shook his head.

“Geez, Geno. There’s like twenty sandwiches in here.” Error began digging through the contents of the tote.

“Twenty-five… Twenty-four, now.” Geno smiled and shrugged. “I didn’t know what to make.”

Error grumbled something before taking out another sandwich. Geno tried not to comment that it was also a peanut butter and jelly.

Fresh was next, though he already knew what he wanted and didn’t take long picking it out.

“Tuna fish… You still like them?” Error asked.

“Ya. Geno’s are tha best.” Fresh grinned and passed it on.

Geno’s choice was more methodical. He could eat any of the sandwiches, and he liked all of them. After carefully considering the choices, he chose a tuna fish sandwich as well, merely on the basis that the more of them that were left over, the more his fridge would stink by the end of the week.

“So, Ink, what do you do?” Geno offered, trying to start a conversation.

Ink was happily enjoying his sandwich and looked a bit startled when he was called upon.

“Oh, uh, I work at an art gallery. I sell artwork to extremely rich people.”

“With Chara, right?” Geno asked. Ink nodded.

“Yeah! Oh, I forgot you guys know her.” He smiled weakly. He didn’t really want to hear any stories about his boyfriend’s ex, as much as he liked her. They would just involve Error and her being together and…

Ink might have been a little uncomfortable imagining Error with someone else.

“She used to be Error’s friend. Her and Cross came one spring break to visit us. They’re both really…”

“Intense.” Fresh finished for the eldest. Error sighed.

“Can we please not talk about her?” He asked. Ink was thankful Error was on the same page as him.

“What do you two do? Geno, you’re a doctor, right?” Ink quickly tried to change the subject. He finished his sandwich and reached for the lunch bag. He was going for an encore.  

“A resident… But yeah, I work in the pediatric wing of the hospital.” Geno smiled.

“He’s got this really creepy dude following him…” Error snorted a laugh. “Did you ever talk to him?”

“We talked.”

The quartet stopped, heads whipping to Geno. Standing behind him was none other than said creepy dude, a lazy grin on his face, wearing his same black hoodie and jeans, gripping an iced coffee in one hand.

“Reaper?!” Geno shrieked.

“Hey, Geno.” Reaper raised his free hand in greeting. “Didn’t know you would be here.”

“I find that hard to believe.” Geno hissed.

“Is me wanting to get out of the morgue on my day off and get some fresh air really that hard to believe?”

Geno grumbled, but finally conceded with a shake of his head.

“I guess not…” He mumbled.

“Mind if I join, then?” Reaper asked but sat down before he was given the okay. “Oh, sandwiches.” He took the lunch tote and began looking through them.

Reaper had not been out to just get fresh air that day.

No, he had been out on the hunt. A hunt for Geno.

His first step was to check Undernet for Geno’s profile. The guy hadn’t used it in nine months, but he did have his family members listed. He found Fresh’s profile and quickly jumped to that. Seeing that Fresh was an Undergram star, he went to find his profile.

Fresh had posted a selfie of him and Geno setting up the blankets with the caption ‘Gettin’ ready ta meet tha bro’s bf.’

Here came the tricky part.

Fresh did not tag his location. A bold move. But Reaper was better.

In the corner of the picture was part of a fountain. A fountain only found in Waterfall Village Park.

Thus, Reaper was able to see Geno on a Saturday.

Geno sighed softly.

“So yeah, this is the guy that’s been following me.” He finished, rubbing between his browbones.

Ink watched Reaper, his own eyes changing rapidly. He was able to tell an obsessed person when he saw one. After all, takes one to know one.

“Er… Fresh, what do you do?” He asked, trying to focus on something else. Anything else.

“He takes pictures and posts them to Undergram.” Error frowned.

“Error… He does more than that. Like promote organizations that help kids in need… Stuff like that.” Geno offered.

Ink frowned slightly and looked back to Fresh.

“So, what do you do?” He tried again, ignoring the others. Fresh just continued to grin.

“Tha technical term is ‘social media influencer’ but I do jus’ what they said.” He shrugged slightly, appreciative that Ink had let him speak for himself.

“And… er… Reaper, what do you do?” Ink was not asking out of courtesy. He really wanted to know what this strange skeleton did.

“I perform autopsies.” The doctor stated, grinning slightly.

“That makes sense.” Ink nodded to himself.

“You’ve got jelly on your cheek.” Error muttered, gently wiping the food away with his thumb.

“You’re not gonna eat it?” Ink pouted.

“Gross. Why would I eat it?” Error asked, wiping his hand on his jeans.

“You know…” Ink grinned at him slyly. Error grimaced.

“Please… not in front of them…” Error groaned, glancing at Fresh. 

“Anyway!” Geno hopped up. The whole scene had gone from cute to awkward in about zero seconds and he didn’t want to hear anymore. “Fresh brought some games.”

“Not really games. Jus’ some stuff to play with.” Fresh shrugged and stood. He grabbed his duffel bag and emptied its contents. There were some frisbees, a few different types of balls, and a wooden baseball bat.

Ink frowned slightly.

“Seems like… Kid stuff.” He eyed the motley pile.

Fresh shrugged.

“I like ‘em.” The tall skeleton said. “Error, wanna play baseball? For ol’ time’s sake?”

“Not really.” Error stared at him.

“Scared?” Fresh tried to entice him.

“We don’t even have enough people.”

“Not that kind o’ baseball. _Our_ kind of baseball.”

Ink watched as Fresh’s words affected Error. He could see him change, though everything stayed the same. Now he understood what Error had meant about being able to tell when he was really forgetting something.

Error stood.

“Fine.” He huffed and went over to the pile, plucking a bright green softball from the mix. Fresh’s grin seemed to widen, and he picked up the bat. The two moved to an open space on the grass, facing each other from a distance.  

“What’s going on?” Ink asked as Geno stood and moved to sit next to him so he could watch his brothers’ play.

“It’s something Error used to do for Fresh. It was so he could get his eye-hand coordination better.” Geno smiled as him. “Even though Fresh is so much taller, he’s still the little brother. Just look at that grin.”

Ink’s eyes changed to question marks as he looked to Fresh. The grin looked the same. Maybe it was something only brothers would be able to notice.

“Okay, Fresh.” Error began, lifting the ball up and in front of him, laying on his palm. He knew Fresh wanted the whole experience. He could at least do that for his brother. “Keep your eye on the ball.”

“Shouldn’t he have said ‘eyes’?” Ink asked. Geno shook his head.

“No, it’s eye.” Geno corrected, but seeing the confusion on Ink’s face, decided to continue. “He can only really see out of one eye.”

“I guess you all have vision problems?” Ink asked. Geno frowned.

“What makes you assume I have vision problems?”

“Well…” Ink gestured to the glitches covering one side of Geno’s face. Geno laughed.

“I guess you’re right. My one eye sees perfectly fine, though.” Geno glanced at Reaper. He still didn’t quite believe that he was ‘just in the area,’ but the guy was just sitting there on his phone. Not bothering anyone. It made Geno nervous.

Fresh gently swung the bat a few times, practicing. He kept his gaze trained on the ball that Error had started gently tossing up and down.

“Is he ever going to throw it?” Ink asked. He was getting antsy.

“Soon.” Geno smiled.

Suddenly, Fresh stopped his swinging and pulled back his arm, going into a batter’s stance.

“Keep your eye on the ball.” Error commanded for the final time. He pulled his arm back and released.

Fresh waited, his grin growing with every inch that the ball traveled. He was ready.

He swung.

The crack of the bat was deafening as it split in two, the ball shooting into the air. Error jumped back, his eyes wide.

“Shitake!” He yelled as he went running, trying to chase the ball with his eyes. He dodged people and pets, as well as objects other picnickers had left out. He dove, skidding along the grass, just as the ball fell into his hand. He jumped up, triumphantly holding the ball over his head.

“Not today, Fresh!” He called as he walked back to his group. “We have to go for round…”

He frowned, looking at the broken bat Fresh had picked up and was holding. Even Reaper had looked up when Fresh broke the bat.

“What the hole? When did you get so strong?” Error asked, eyes wide. Fresh just grinned.

“I guess I grew up.” Fresh looked back to the bat. “Looks like we can’t have tha’ round two, broski.”

“Error, your shirt.” Ink laughed. Error glanced down. His light blue T-shirt had a giant grass stain down it. He shrugged.

“It’s old anyway.” He grumbled.

“All ya clothes are old.” Fresh tilted his head.

“Yeah? What’s it to you?” Error snapped. “You still have clothes from the 90s.”

“They’re rad.” Fresh looked down at his clothing, then back to Error. “Ya’s just old.”

“You-“ Error frowned and made a move towards Fresh, whose glasses immediately jumped to ‘OH NO’. Error pulled back and laughed.

“I still got it.”  He laughed again. ‘PHEW’ read the glasses.

“Do you guys want to play frisbee?” Geno asked, standing. “Reaper? Since you want to get some fresh air?” He looked to the skeleton who didn’t even seem phased.

“Sure.” He said and stood. “I’m not good at it.”

The five of them played frisbee for most of the afternoon. Reaper had been truthful; he was awful. He only caught three of the frisbees (Geno was, indeed, counting). Ink had been better than anyone had thought he would, and he and Error had gotten into small spats on the field, trying to outdo one another. Geno caught quite a few frisbees with his face, but he managed to throw them well. Fresh had been the most serious of them all because he couldn’t look away from the frisbee without risking not even seeing it when it came to him. In the end, Fresh had won through sheer determination. Just like he did in life.

Reaper checked his phone.

“It’s getting late. I better get going. Things to feed.” He said.

“Oh? You have a cat?” Geno asked.

“Snake.” Reaper grinned, watching as Geno looked horrified. “Just kidding. She’s a guinea pig. I see too much death to want to have an animal I feed dead things to.”

Geno was both relieved and a taken aback. Of all the pets he would expect Reaper to have, a guinea pig was not one of them.

“Her name’s Geno.”

“WHAT?!”

The pathologist snickered. “You’re really gullible. Bye, Geno. Bye… everyone.” He saluted before turning and moving towards the park’s entrance. Geno watched him go.

“You like him.” Error said, grinning.

“I do not.” Geno huffed.

“Ya agreed ta a date with ‘im.” Fresh reminded.

“You did what?” Ink gasped. “But he’s so…”

“He’s good for Geno.” Error shrugged. “You wanna go?” He asked, looking to Ink.

Ink had to think about it.

“I guess I am tired.” He admitted. “I’ll see you guys soon! It was nice meeting you!”

Geno smiled.

“It was good meeting you too. I can tell Error really likes enjoys being with you.” He said.

“It was nice meetin’ ya-“

“Fresh?” Ink asked.

“Yah?”

“Can I see your eyebrows?” Ink grinned. Error frowned.

“Ink, I don’t think he wants to.” He huffed, trying to steer Ink away.

“Nah, it’s cool. Just for ya, big bro’s boyfriend.” Fresh lifted his glasses.

Ink blinked up into Fresh’s visage. To his credit, he did not jump, nor did he make a joke. Fresh’s right eye socket was empty, and the other’s eyelight was the shape on an upside-down heart. There were miscellaneous scars around his eyes, though the ones around the right eye were reminiscent of tentacles trying to escape. His eyes focused on the giant, fuzzy eyebrows.

“Woah.” Ink sighed under his breath. “They really are big.”

Fresh let out a chuckle before sliding his glasses back into place.

“Bye, you two.” Geno smiled and waved.

“Wait.” Fresh stopped them. “Love ya, bro.” He paused waiting.

Error frowned.

Fresh waited.

Error’s frown deepened.

Fresh’s patience was infinite.

Error caved.

“Love you guys too…” He mumbled, gently grabbing Ink by the arm and escorting him away.

Geno stared as the two walked away.

“You got him to say it.” He gasped. 

“He always says it for me.”

 

* * *

 

“Can I ask?” Ink blurted once they were safely on the train. This time, luckily, there were seats open.

“Ask about what?” Error returned, knowing full well what Ink meant.

“About Fresh. I know that those marks… aren’t natural.” He moved to cuddle into Error’s side, who automatically moved his arm to Ink’s shoulders.

“They’re not.” Error growled. “I didn’t tell you because I don’t like talking about it.”

“Oh… You don’t have to, you know? I understand.” There were things Ink didn’t like talking about either. Like his own biological family.

“No, you should know. It’s not a secret or anything.” Error looked away. “When he was a kid, he was pushed off a ramp at a skate park. Right in front of some kid coming down from doing a trick on a bike. Both of them were pretty hurt, but Fresh got the worst of it. He was a good skateboarder, too. Might have gone pro. He probably still could, but he can barely see anything without those stupid glasses.”

Ink sat, digesting this information. No wonder Error didn’t want to talk about it. For all of Error’s pomp and circumstance about not wanting his brothers around, after today, Ink could tell he really liked them. Especially Fresh. He may just have needed some space.

“What about goggles?” Ink asked. “Could he get the same kind of prescription in goggles?”

Error shook his head.

“He could, but it wouldn’t work. We tried. He still has blind spots, and unfortunately for skeletons, we can’t get contacts. He’s doing his best, though.”

“Hm…” Ink looked at him curiously. “So, you really don’t care if he’s a… ‘social media influencer’?”

Error snorted.

“He makes money by spreading positivity… or in his own words, ‘fresh vibes.’ I’m just worried he’s going to fall out of style and be left with nothing.”   

“You’re worried about him.” It was a statement. Error squirmed.

“I…I guess I am… He’s my little brother, after all.” He slid down in his seat.

“It’s sweet.” Ink grinned, perhaps a bit sadly. Error blushed.

“Anyway…” The glitch started. “Are you hungry?”

Ink paused.

“A bit. Are we gonna order something?” He smiled.

“I was thinking that we go out somewhere… Y’know, we haven’t really been out since our first date.” Error looked away.

“Aren’t you embarrassed to go out in that shirt?” Ink asked, looking down at the giant green stain. Error followed his gaze and shrugged.

“Not really. Are you?”

“Hm… We can’t go anywhere fancy then.” Ink nodded to himself. Error unwrapped his arm from around Ink and zipped up his sweater.

“Boom. Fancy approved.” Error grinned. Ink laughed.

“Okay then… I want sushi!” He announced.

“Uh… You sure? You don’t really like fish…” Error frowned slightly.

“Your brother called me a five-year-old after I picked peanut butter and jelly.” The artist pouted.

“That’s because I told him you got a hotdog on our first date.” Error scratched the back of his neck nervously.

“So, you were telling him I eat like a child?!” Ink gasped.

“Er… Not really, no. Geno was… making fun of me after I got chicken nuggets at the cafeteria and called me a five-year-old. He asked me if you knew I eat like a kid.” Error shrugged, an awkward smile on his face.

Ink laughed.

“You mean he was really just commenting on us eating alike?”

“Yeah… He definitely wouldn’t make fun of you. At your first meeting, anyway…” Error glanced up to check where they were on the train line, then back to Ink. “Do you still want sushi, then?”

“Yeah! But one with the conveyer belt!”

 

* * *

 

Chara had been doing what she normally did on Saturdays.

She was walking around her apartment, a tank top on, no bra, and a pair of short pajama bottoms that would have embarrassed even the most lude of creatures. In hand was an open bottle of wine, from which she sipped casually as she tried to clean. Her apartment wasn’t messy, per se, but she liked it to stay orderly. Not as orderly as Error, dear stars no.

Error…

She had been thinking about him a lot lately. Ever since Ink had started to work for her. She hadn’t expected Error to so casually slip back into her life. And Ink talked about him _incessantly._ Error this. Error that. It was cute, and she always egged him on, giving advice on how to win Error’s heart.

She frowned, taking another swig of wine, an airy white.

Hopefully, Ink wouldn’t break it.

Like she did.

She took another drink, and then one more just to wash down the first.

Error had insisted they stay friends. It worked. For a while. But she got tired of that sad look in his eyes every time he saw her. Like he regretted what came between them. Like he still wanted to work things out.

There was nothing to work out.

She sighed and laid over the back of her couch, miraculously keeping the bottle upright in her hand. Would it be okay, now?

She missed him.

She missed Cross.

She turned her head towards the bookshelf, staring at a framed photo of her and her two best friends.

She let a tear fall. Then another.

Did she deserve to come back into their lives?

She moved to properly sit on her couch only so she could take a drink. She didn’t deserve to be their friend. She had been hurt, so she lashed out and hurt Error worse. She even hurt Cross, though he promised that he forgave her, always so stoic and noble. They had promised there would always be a place for her with them.

She set the bottle down. No use drinking the whole thing in one sitting. She wasn’t in college anymore.

She picked up her phone, frowning into her reflection on the black screen. She took a deep breath to steel herself and unlocked the device, scrolling through her contacts till she found the right one and pressed call.

“Cross?” She asked meekly. “It’s Chara… Do you… Would you… Want to hang out sometime?”

A pause.

“Yeah. I’ll tell Error.”

She choked back a sob.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: sometimes I think of scenes in this fic as memes or gifs. Reaper appearing is the gif of Kim Kardashian peeking out of the bushes. 
> 
> Another fun fact: The baseball scene was loosely inspired by a scene in [His Wish](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17397179/chapters/40947617) where Fresh has a baseball bat. It amused me (not in a haha way, though) and stuck with me so here we are.


	15. The L Word

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chara stirs the pot. Unintentionally, for once.

Ink had been bouncing off the walls all day. He couldn’t help it; he was excited. And he had to remind his boss every opportunity that he got.

“Hey! Chara!” He called.

“What, Ink?” She asked from across the room, her tone exasperated.

“We get to hang out in five hours exactly.” Ink tapped his watch.

“Great. Thanks for telling me. Again.” She huffed and walked into another part of the small building.

Ink grinned as he watched her go. He was a little too excited, maybe.

He hadn’t really been on the original invitation list. When Error told him that Chara had called Cross, and they had decided to go out to a bar that Friday, he had been happy for him. But he opened his eyes wide, a slight pout on his face.

_“I’m gonna miss you…” He said, looking away._

_“…If you want to go, just say so.” Error sighed._

_“No, no… if you want time with your friends, you should have it…” He gently swayed back and forth. Error sighed again._

_“Ink, do you want to come?” He asked._

_“Not if I’ll be intruding…” More swaying._

_“Fine. I asked.” Error shrugged._

_“Wait! I’ll go! I was just teasing.” Ink said quickly, dropping the act. Error laughed._

_“I win.” Error grinned at him._

_“Win what?”_

_“I tricked you, not the other way around.” Another shrug._

_“Mean.”_

_“What did you expect?”_

Ink hummed quietly as he began putting things away. He wasn’t really thrilled about the venue, but he had never been to a bar before so he couldn’t knock it too much. He and drunks just… didn’t really mix. He had also thought about inviting Blue, to start the romance wheels turning, but decided against it. This was about Error rekindling his relationship with Chara.

Friendship.

This was about Error rekindling his _friendship_ with Chara.

He blinked. What a slip.

“Hey, Ink?” Chara asked. He jumped slightly. “You okay?”

“Y-yeah. Was just lost in thought. What’d ya need?” He smiled.

“Could you lock up tonight? I need to get out early so I can change… You’re not going home, right?” She asked, still watching him curiously.

“Y-yeah! Error’s coming to pick me up.” His smile turned into a grin. She smiled softly back at him.

“Thanks. You can just give me the keys when you get to the bar.” She handed him the set. “I wish I had someone to come pick me up…” She pretended to sniff.

“Well…” Ink slyly started. “I could give you my friend Blue’s number and maybe you could…”

He watched as pink tinged the woman’s cheeks.

“Maybe someday.” She laughed nervously before speeding off. Ink laughed to himself, then went back to his work.

He frowned.

Why was she going home to change? Was her current outfit not good enough for Error and Cross? He glanced at her. It was her usual blouse and skirt getup. That seemed fine for a meeting with friends. His frown deepened. What if Error dressed up? He looked down at his own outfit of the day. It was good enough for a bar. He assumed. He shook his head. Chara just wanted to change into something more comfortable. Her clothes must be stiff. She needed to wear something more casual to feel more at ease.

He wanted to slap himself for even thinking Chara had some kind of ulterior motive for wanting to meet with Error again. And it wasn’t like she had only want to meet with Error. She had called Cross first. It was awfully convenient timing, though. He had started dating Error and she wanted to see him and Cross again? It was suspicious. Especially after that look she had given him Monday morning.

_“Wow Ink, you’re in a good mood this morning.” Chara had grinned, looking down at him as she let him into the gallery._

_“Ah that’s because…” He blushed softly. “I had an eventful morning.”_

_Chara snickered._

_“Error do something else romantic today? Did he make you your own pair of gloves? Declare his feelings in the middle of the subway station? Spin you around and dip you, kissing you passionately?”_

_“No… We just uh… woke up early…” Ink laughed awkwardly._

_“How is that something to be happy about?” She scoffed._

_“We uh… woke up early and…” Ink trailed off, blushing even more at the memory. Error had texted him, asking if he was awake. He hadn’t been until the text, but he sent back a yes anyway and a few moments later opened his door to an Error dressed in his pajamas, a soft blush on his cheeks._

_‘I-I just… wanted to see you.’ Error whispered. Ink had laughed._

_‘Okay… Come in.’ Ink gently pulled him in._

_“And stuff happened.” Ink finished._

_Chara seemed startled, then her brows knit together, and she frowned slightly._

_“I have to go to the bathroom.” She said quietly before stalking off. Ink watched her go and shrugged, dismissing it until he was alone that night._

He had let it fester.

“Alright Ink, I’m going. See you soon!” Chara called from the door. Ink gave her a wave and a small smile.

Right. Tonight.

It was a while before he was even close to finishing up. It really did take a while for just one person to finish all of their duties. He couldn’t even say he was okay with it. He was covering for Chara, who had left early to dress nicely for the night ahead, where she would be seeing her friends for the first time in almost two years, and one of them she used to date. That he was currently dating. He had started this day excited. How had it devolved into whatever this was?

“Ink?”

His heart skipped a beat and he could have laughed hysterically. Just his voice, in a place as unexpected as his work, was enough to make him feel like a child at an amusement park for the first time.

“Error!” He turned to face him happily, rushing towards him, arms outstretched. “I missed you!”

He practically jumped on Error, wrapping his legs around Error’s hips and his arms around Error’s neck. Error let out a strangled cry and quickly tucked his arms underneath him, making sure the two of them didn’t fall.

“What the hell, Ink?” Error groaned.

“It’s because I missed you.” Ink grinned. And he had just really needed to see him. But he wasn’t about to tell Error that.

“Can I… put you down?” Error asked. Ink gently nuzzled his cheek.

“Only if you kiss me.” Ink cooed.

“I can’t kiss you when you’re doing that.” Error growled.

Ink pulled back enough so they could look each other in the eyes. He grinned lazily at his partner.

Error sighed and leaned in, giving Ink a soft kiss. But Ink didn’t let go. He needed this. He ensnared Error, gently teasing his tongues into play. He knew there were cameras in the gallery, and he knew this was probably frowned upon, but he couldn’t help himself. He knew Error had no interest in Chara, but he wanted to remind himself that Error had interest in _him._

Error pulled back, smiling slightly.

“You need to finish so we can leave.”

“Fine...” Ink slowly climbed down from his perch. “I really just need to lock up.”

Ink finally took in Error’s clothing choice and was relieved to see that he was dressed in some of his ratty old clothes. He felt relieved. He flitted around the gallery, doing quite a bit more than ‘just locking up’, so Error had decided to walk around and look at the artwork on sale. He didn’t really understand it, but he supposed they looked nice enough.

“Ready?” Ink finally asked.

“I’ve been ready.” Error chastised.

“I forgot I had more to do.” Ink laughed slightly and led them to the door. “Are you nervous?” He asked.

“Nervous? Why would I be nervous?” Error asked.

“Because you’re seeing Chara for the first time in years!” He twisted the key. Error shrugged.

“Not really.” Error glanced at his phone. “Let’s get going.”

 

* * *

When they got there, Cross was already waiting, sitting at a table for four. He got there early so he could snag one of the few tables before the after-work crowd filtered in. He had already ordered a pitcher of beer and it, along with three glass mugs and one plastic cup were sitting on the table.

“Hey.” Error said simply and shrugged out of his hoodie, placing it on the back of his chair. Ink did the same with his jacket and the chair beside him. He might have strategically placed himself between Error and the final, empty chair. He was probably going to drive himself insane that night with all of these stupid, tiny feelings.

“Hey, Cross!” Ink greeted happily. “How’s it going with Dream? Error told me about it. You had a date, right? Do you like him?” He sat down and placed his elbows on the table, cradling his skull in his hands.

“Uh…” Cross started.

“He probably doesn’t want to tell you about it.” Error huffed.

“Why?” Ink frowned. Error frowned at him and gestured, as if it were obvious. “Oh, right. I dated Dream…”

Cross grimaced slightly, but quickly steeled himself again.

“I got you a soda.” He pointed to the red cup.

“Thanks!” Ink chirped and took the large cup, dunking a plastic straw into it.

“Don’t thank him. I told him to get it for you.” Error crossed his arms.

“I bought it.” Cross frowned.

“I paid you for it.” Error growled.

“Already fighting boys? And not even over me this time?”

Chara stood before them, clothed in a skin-tight black dress, her red tinted lips grinning at them. Ink inwardly grimaced. Why was she wearing such a dress if she didn’t want to impress Error?! 

“Chara!” Error said excitedly and stood, giving her a hug. Cross did the same.

Ink pouted, watching them. It was stupid, he knew. But the way Error smiled at her like that… He thought Error only smiled at _him_ like that.

Maybe he was just reading into every little detail, since he was already on edge. That must have been it.

“Hi, Ink.” She smiled as she moved around him to sit beside him. She slipped off her coat, revealing her curves. Ink almost threw up. “Already got the beer, huh?”

“Yeah. It’s still cold, even though you’re late.” Error teased as he poured her a glass before himself. Cross held out his mug as well, and Error looked at it, then set the pitcher down. Cross glared before snatching the pitcher and pouring himself a drink.

“I had to get all prettied up for my two best friends.” Chara gently flipped her hair, though there wasn’t much of an effect considering her hair was shoulder-length.

Ink sat awkwardly, sipping his soda. Overthinking every. Single. Thing.

“We don’t care what you look like.” Cross scolded. “You just want to go home with someone tonight.”

“Maybe…” Chara sing-songed, then winked. Ink could have sworn she was looking at Error when she did. “So, how have you guys been? I get most of my information from this punk, but I want to hear it from you.” She gently nudged Ink with a laugh.

“I’m about to finish my first year of graduate school.” Cross shrugged.

“And?” Chara leaned forward, beckoning.

“And… Error’s about to graduate.” Cross blurted, throwing the attention off himself.

Ink snorted mid-sip, soda coming out of his nasal cavity. He coughed and wiped away the excess.

“Y-you’re graduating? Like, at the end of this semester?” He asked.

“Yeah…” Error shot Cross a death glare.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Ink asked softly.

“He has a hard time telling others about himself.” Chara stated. “I’m sure he wanted to tell you, but he didn’t know how. He doesn’t want to seem pompous. Happens all the time, right, Error?”

“Can you not speak for me?” Error growled and glared before turning to Ink. “It’s because I have a hard time telling people about myself.”

“So, exactly like Chara said?” Ink asked.

“Exactly like Chara said.” Error conceded.

“But this is big! I need to know so I can plan your surprise!” Ink huffed. “I’m kind of upset.”

Error looked softly down at the other, gently holding Ink’s chin with his finger and thumb.

“I promise to tell you important stuff from now on. I’m sorry.” He gently ran his thumb over Ink’s jawbone.

“Aw, I’m kind of jealous.” Chara sighed softly, only audible to Cross.

“Want Error back?” Cross cocked a browbone.

“No…” She smiled softly. “I want something like that… Just look at them. They’re kind of…”

“Perfect together.” Cross finished.

“Yeah…” Chara still watched the two, even as they started teasing each other. “What about you and… what’s his name? Cosmos?”

“Dream…” Cross corrected. “I… I don’t know about us. We had one date and now we just eat lunch together every day. He was… pretty hurt by Ink. I don’t think anything’ll get serious anytime soon.”

“Will you wait for him?” Chara asked sadly. Cross frowned and looked into his mug.

“I want to… But if someone comes along… I can’t make any promises.” He shrugged and took a drink.

“Smart answer.” Chara took a swig as well. “Hey, lovebirds, let’s go play pool!” She shouted, grabbing the couple’s attention.

“Isn’t pool a two-person game?” Error asked, keeping his arm around Ink. Ink was starting to feel a little better about the night. Error had just ignored his friends for a solid five minutes just for him.

“We’ll play teams. Ink and I, obviously, and you and Cross.” She nodded.

“Why not me and Ink?” Error asked, frowning.

“Because you two will just sit there and flirt the entire time and we won’t get anything done.” She stood and grabbed her mug as well as their pitcher. “I see a free table. Let’s go.”

Chara was absolutely wrong. It did not help for them to be on separate teams.

“Error, why do you keep helping him?!” Cross cried, watching as Error slyly moved around Ink again, showing him how to aim. Ink might have been purposefully acting ignorant. And their table mates could tell.

“Shut up, Cross!” Error grunted, then looked back at Ink. “Okay, now line your cue up with the ball…”

“Ugh.” Chara groaned. “This is getting gross… Ink, do you want to go to the bar with me?”

“Not really. _I’m_ having fun.” He laughed.

“Okay, then as your boss I command you to come to the bar with me.”

“You can’t do that, it’s after hours.”

“Please, Ink.” Her tone changed and he looked up.

“Okay…” He separated from Error and walked around the table to where Chara was waiting for him. They moved together towards the bar. “Is something wrong?” He asked.

“Yes, very wrong.” Chara sighed dramatically. “Seeing you with Error has upset me.”

Ink tensed, soul racing. Was he about to be challenged to a dual? He doubted he could win against her. She was conniving and played dirty.

“You already made me realize my life was emptier without him. Without Cross.” Chara took a seat on one of the barstools. Ink tentatively joined her. “Order whatever you want. My treat.”

Ink simply ordered another soda, unsure of what to even get that was non-alcoholic besides soda and water. They didn’t really advertise their drink choices at this establishment, he realized. He stayed silent and waited for Chara to continue.

“I’m thankful that you made me realize I miss them but seeing you with Error tonight…” She sighed, looking away sadly. He knew he needed to say something.

“Y-yeah?” He asked. She turned back to face to him, a few tears in her eyes.

“I’m lonely Ink! So lonely!” She cried, placing her hands on his shoulders. “I-I’m ready to take that phone number… the one for the cute… tiny… crushable, little skeleton.”

Ink stared at her for a moment, sockets wide, mouth hanging open from shock. Then he started laughing.

“What?!” She exclaimed. “Why are you laughing at my loneliness?!”

“I-I thought…” Ink laughed again. He should have known there was nothing to worry about. This was Chara. The girl who cheered him on with Error. He shook his head, calming down. “I’m not laughing at that… Give me your phone and I’ll put it in… why is crushable desirable to you?”

Chara handed over her cell and watched as Ink started to type Blue’s number in.

“I don’t know…” She admitted. “I kind of want to bully him…”

“Like when they told us ‘she’s only mean to you because she likes you’?” Ink asked and handed the phone back. He felt someone slide between him and the person on the stool next to him so that they could order from the bar.

“A bit, I guess.” Chara smiled shyly. “Thanks, Ink.”

“Hey cutie, come here often?”

Ink whipped around to face whoever had the balls to creep up behind him. His mouth was open in a retort, but when he saw who it was, he could only laugh.

“Error!” He playfully shoved him in the chest. Error only grinned.

“You guys are unbearable!” Chara sighed and stood, stalking back over to where Cross had been abandoned at the billiard table.

“She’s right, that’s pretty cheesy.” Ink laughed as Error filled Chara’s empty seat.

“You’re smiling, though.” He pointed out and gently tapped Ink’s nose.

“You’re way flirtier today than usual.” Ink laughed once more. Error shrugged with a smile.

“Maybe it’s just having all my important friends together.” He said.

“I’m not your friend.” Ink huffed.

“Boy _friend._ ” Error pointed out. Ink pouted. Error did have a point.

“Okay, I’ll accept that. Did you miss her that much?” Ink asked.

“Yeah, I guess I did.” Error swiveled around to watch Cross and Chara finish their dragged-out game.

Ink felt a pang in his chest. He was over his little… mood, wasn’t he? Then why did it hurt? This wasn’t like him at all.

Cross looked at his phone and said something to Chara, who nodded. They started pushing the remaining balls into the sockets so that their game was over.

“What happened?” Error asked, looking back at Ink who was staring at the ground, frowning and lost in his own thoughts. Error reached out to gently touch him, but his friends arrived before he could.

“I gotta go.” Cross said. “D emergency.”

“D…?” Error asked, then understood. He nodded. “Alright.” He looked back to Ink, who was still staring at the floor. Error frowned. “I think we should go too. Right, Ink?”

“Huh?” Ink finally looked up and smiled. “Yeah, sure!”

Error and Chara exchanged glances.

“Yeah, I’m tired too.” She chimed in. Error and Ink stood from their stools. Chara hugged each of them, giving Error a soft kiss on cheek. “It was great seeing you again, Error.”

She turned and did the same to Cross, who swiped at his cheek furiously, trying to get the lipstick off.

They walked together to the street, waving each other off. Error gently took Ink’s hand as they started to walk towards the subway station.

“Tired?” He asked after a moment. Ink only shook his head. Error frowned but decided not to press it.

On the train, Error ran a million scenarios in his head.

What had he done for Ink to be so sad, so suddenly? They were sitting at the bar, and he thought he was flirting cutely…

Then Ink got quiet. And they had left.

He glanced to his side. Ink wasn’t even being cuddly like he usually was on the train. He just sat, holding Error’s hand, staring out the window.

When they were finally standing at Ink’s door, Error spoke.

“What’s wrong?” He asked.

“W-what?” Ink jumped slightly. “Nothing’s wrong…”

Error sighed.

“I can see _something’s_ wrong. You don’t hide it well.”

Ink frowned, looking down at the floor, again, then took out his key and unlocked the door.

“You’re gonna be upset, but I’ll tell you.” He gestured for the dark skeleton to come inside.

Error frowned, stepping in. The place was an organized mess, as per usual. Since Ink only had his bed as furniture, Error sat down.

“What am I supposed to be upset by?” He asked calmly, though his heart was racing.

“Um…” Ink looked to the side. “I guess… I’ve been a little…” He swallowed. He hadn’t wanted to put a name to the feeling, but he knew what it was. “A little jealous? Of you and Chara?”

Error frowned. He wanted to laugh at how ridiculous Ink sounded but looking at the little artist he knew Ink was in no state for his teasing. He gently patted the seat next to him on the bed.

“Sit down…?” He asked, looking back to Ink. Ink nodded and took his place beside Error, still not really looking at him. “Why are you jealous?”

“I… I don’t…” Ink frowned, then sighed, deciding to give up and just tell Error, even if it hurt his pride.

“I don’t know when it started… but I think it was after Monday, after I told Chara that you and I had sex that morning…”

Error bit back his tongues, though he colored.

“She gave me a funny look, then ran off. I didn’t think much about it until later… Then today I just kept… making stuff up in my head. Like, that she wanted to go home and change because she was seeing you, and that she only called Cross because she wanted to steal you from me, and then tonight you said you really missed her and…” Ink couldn’t help it. His eyes filled with tears.

“It’s stupid, I know…” He placed his hands on his chest, just over his soul. “But this is the first time I’ve felt… jealous, in that way…” He slumped down, shoulders hunched.

Error looked at him, thinking of what to say. He had many things to voice, like how Ink shouldn’t be jealous of Chara in any way because they were over and had moved on, or how it was okay to feel jealous sometimes and that it was natural, that he had done the right thing by not letting it build up and telling him. Instead, he said what had been heavy on his soul since the weekend:

“I love you." 

Ink looked up sharply, eyes wide. Error was staring at him looking horrified at the words that had come out of his mouth. He wasn’t upset that he felt them; he was upset he had said them at worst time. His face colored, but he couldn’t look away from Ink, who was staring at him, his own blush creeping onto his cheeks.

They were quiet for a full minute before Error decided to speak again.

“U-um…I didn’t mean it… Well, I meant it, but I was going to wait to tell you… Er… D-Don’t worry about saying it back… uh… I should probably go…” Error moved to stand up, but Ink pulled him back down.

“Why’d you say it now?” He asked quietly.

“I don’t know…” Error huffed, looking away. “I guess… I wanted to assure you nothing would happen between me and Chara. There’s no way I would _ever_ leave you for her. I…” He looked back to Ink. “I never really told you what happened between us, did I?”

Ink simply shook his head.

“Okay, well…” Error sighed again. “Chara and I dated for a year… I really did care for her. But… I couldn’t stand to touch her. I could barely hold her hand, Ink. Intimacy…” He blushed and looked away. “I couldn’t have sex with her. I just couldn’t. But she needed that. So, we broke it off. And you, Ink.” He looked back to Ink, who was sitting, dazed.

“Everything is so easy with you. I don’t mean just touching. I… want to do nice things for you. I want to be there for you… I want to spend every waking moment with you, and it drives me crazy when we can’t be together. This isn’t like me at all. I know everyone’s told you it isn’t like me, that you’re special, but you haven’t heard it from me before so… Ink, you’re special to me in ways no one else has ever been.”

He took a deep breath.

“That’s why you never have to be jealous of anyone else. Ever.” He shyly reached out and cupped Ink’s cheek in his hand. “Okay?”

Ink stared at him, breathless. He finally smiled.

“Me too.” He whispered.

“What?” Error blinked.

“I love you too.” His smile spread until it was a grin. “I love you, Error!”

He flung himself at his boyfriend, making them fall back on the bed. He grabbed the sides of Error’s face and kissed him repeatedly until they were both laughing. They finally broke away, only slightly, to lay on their sides and face each other.

“So, you were a virgin until our first time?” Ink asked, smilingly.

“Uh…” Error blushed. “Yeah, but only because of…”

“Haphephobia.” Ink finished, still grinning. He wouldn’t joke about it, but he did find it both amusing and endearing. “I know…” He gently pressed their foreheads together.

“When did you figure it out?” He asked, keeping the space between them minimal.

“Figure out what?” Error breathed.

“That you loved me.”

Error laughed.

“Sunday night. I couldn’t sleep because it… kind of freaked me out.” He admitted. “I’ve never felt this was about someone… so fast.”

“It has been pretty fast, huh?”

“Yeah…” Error admitted. “But I don’t care. They always say, ‘you know when you know’ and I guess that’s true. It doesn’t matter how long it’s been.”

“Mm… yeah. You really do know when you know.” Ink finally pulled away, just enough so he could look into Error’s eyes. “I love you.” He said again.

Error smiled.

“I love you too, Inky.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be uploaded tomorrow, but I have no self control. (This is why we can't have nice things like an update schedule.) 
> 
> It's a little early, but, 
> 
> HAPPY BIRTHDAY ERROR! 
> 
> Have some happiness, glitchy boy. 
> 
>  
> 
> **Thanks for reading!**


	16. A Multitude of Cats

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream is able to get even more off his chest while Ink and Error experience the joys of cooking.

Cross had had to leave early for one reason, and one reason alone:

Dream needed him.

He only felt minimally bad about having to leave; he did regret he had to cut their reunion short, but it had really just been an excuse for Error and Ink to be on each other all night. He and Chara were in agreement about one thing, though he never said it aloud: the two were making him jealous of what they had. Chara’s question didn’t help either.

He couldn’t wait for Dream forever.

That had weighed heavy on his mind for a long time. He was okay with being the rebound… for now. If… when it became apparent Dream wasn’t going to date him, he’d leave. Not entirely. He would still be friends with Dream, but nothing more. He’d find someone else.

As he sped on his motorcycle towards Dream’s apartment, he thought about Nightmare, of all monsters. Error had been wrong. The twin hadn’t been flirting him. At least, that’s what he said. At times, Cross thought he might have been lying. The kid had been overly upset to just be concerned with Dream’s wellbeing. Cross assumed. He didn’t have any siblings, not really, to be protective over.

He pulled up in front of the building, only to find Dream sitting on the steps to the building. He smiled and stood when he saw Cross, gently wiping his eyes. Cross cut the engine and slid off the seat, taking off his helmet all the while.

“What’s wrong?” He asked immediately.

“O-oh… Nothing. Just…” Dream looked away, shyly.

“Just you need to ride around yelling?” Cross asked. Dream laughed awkwardly.

“Y-yeah…” Dream rubbed his arm softly.

“…” Cross stared at him, frowning slightly.

Dream fidgeted under the intense gaze.

“Come on.” Cross shrugged and pulled out the second helmet, tossing it to Dream.

Dream smiled and slid it on, happily getting on behind Cross once more. It seemed his nervousness had abated after a few good yells the last time he was on it. He wrapped his arms around Cross just before he revved the engine and took off.

This time, Cross took him in a completely different direction: to the outskirts of town. Dream would have been concerned that they were going somewhere isolated, but that was the point, wasn’t it?

They raced along a hillside, trees on either side of them.

“When you’re ready!” Cross called back to him.

Dream took a deep breath and steadied himself.

He let out an animalistic cry into the night, no words, only sound and feeling. He was confused. He was angry. There weren’t any clear sentences he could say to accurately describe how he felt. When he couldn’t scream any longer, he paused, taking in an unneeded breath and started again. He repeated the process until his throat was hoarse and he was forced to quiet down, coughing softly.

Cross took the cue and pulled them into a neighborhood, right up to a park with only a set of swings and a dilapidated slide. It was late now, and mist hung in the air with a slight spring-night chill.

“Need a break?” Cross asked, turning off the engine.

“Do I get a choice?” Dream croaked, smiling softly. Cross smirked and shook his head.

They left their helmets on the bike and went to sit at the swing set. Dream gently twisted the chains of his swing together, releasing them so he spun gently. Cross simply watched him.

“Wanna talk about it?” He asked quietly.

“Hum.” Dream had to think about it. Cross was one of the few people he was most open with.  Cross was the one person (besides Nightmare, probably) who was the most removed from his situation. He didn’t have to play politics with him. He didn’t have to hide his true feelings with him.

“I just feel so… confused lately. And angry. Angry that my relationship with Ink was fake all that time. That Ink could do that to me. I know he thought he was doing the right thing, but it wasn’t the right thing, was it?” He asked, turning to face his companion.

Cross shook his head.

“No. It wasn’t. If he really valued your feelings, he would have cut it off as soon as he realized it.” He stated. Dream nodded.

“I think so too. I do wish him the best in life but…” Dream frowned and looked at the ground. “But I kind of don’t ever want to see him again.”

“Then don’t.”

Dream looked up, startled.

“How could I even think about really doing that?” He gasped.

Cross shrugged.

“You don’t have to see him if you don’t want to. You don’t have to keep him a part of your life for his sake. I don’t… I don’t think he’s even told Error what really happened with you two. He doesn’t really deserve to have you worrying about him.”

“He hasn’t told…?” Dream blinked. “Have you?”

Cross shook his head.

“It’s not my place to tell him. It’s Ink’s.” He shrugged.

“Do you like him? Ink?” Dream asked quietly.

“…” Cross thought for a moment. “I like him as Error’s boyfriend… I don’t like him as your ex-boyfriend.”

Dream thought on that, then smiled.

“You didn’t really answer me, but it makes sense.” He sighed softly. “So, I don’t have to see him?”

Cross shook his head.

“What if we start dating?”

Cross’s eyes went wide.

“Uh…” He stammered, unsure of what to say.

“That’s what I’ve been confused about.” Dream blushed and looked away.

“Me?” Cross asked, pointing to himself.

“Yeah…” Dream looked up and let out a soft laugh. “I-I don’t think I’m ready to date…”

Cross held in a sigh.

“But I think, if I keep saying that to myself, I’ll never be ready.” He smiled sadly. “My friend Blue… he always tells me that our relationship was over much longer before it officially ended. And he’s right. That’s why I’m confused.”

Cross nodded.

“You don’t have to rush things for anyone, you know? You can take your time-“

“I AM ready, but I’m scared!” Dream didn’t mean to, but he ended up shouting. He looked anxiously at Cross, quieting down. “I’m scared. It hurt… It _hurts_ a lot… But… I know you won’t wait forever.”

Cross frowned but said nothing.

“I’ll never be one hundred percent ready for anything if I keep this up. But I know I like being with you, and I have a lot of fun when we’re together, even if you’re nervous around me… You’re thoughtful and on time… You rushed over when I told you I needed someone…” Dream looked at his hands, gently fidgeting with his sleeves.

Cross watched him softly.

“What are you saying, Dream?” He asked.

Dream looked up at him, his face dusted with gold.

“I like you…” The little skeleton smiled shyly. “And I don’t want you moving on. I want you to stay with me… so will-“

“Will you go out with me, Dream?”

Dream blinked a few times before his eyes widened, eyelights shaped as stars.

“Yes!” He cried. Cross grinned.

“Here!” Dream hopped up from his seat and went to Cross, bending down so that they were on the same level. He pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of them.

“Our first selfie.” He explained, moving back towards his swing. But before he could get too far, Cross gently grabbed his arm and pulled him back, forcing Dream into his lap.

“Our second selfie.” Cross grinned lazily before taking his own phone out and clicking a picture for himself. Dream laughed and blushed, not moving from his seat once the photo was done.

Cross gently started rocking them back and forth, the two of them enjoying the silence.

“Cross?” Dream finally asked.

“Yeah?”

“I’ll have to see Ink, won’t I?”

“…Not if you don’t want to. I’ll make sure of it.”

“But I want to be a part of your life… All aspects of it. I just…”

“If it comes time for you to be together with me, Error, and Ink, you’ll have me. I promise. Until then, don’t worry about it.”

Dream smiled softly and turned around, putting a leg on either of Cross to that they were facing each other. The other skeleton flushed and stopped swinging, unsure of himself.

“I’m sorry you always have to reassure me.” Dream smiled sadly.

“You don’t have to apologize for that. Dream, I want to. Since I first saw you, I…” Cross began to stumble over his words. “I-I j-just kn-knew th-that I-I wante-d to b-be a-round you…” He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. “I-I w-want to h-help you…”

Dream smiled. He leaned in, gently kissing Cross’s cheek before leaning his head against Cross’s, wrapping his arms around the other skeleton’s ribs.

“When will you stop being so nervous around me?” He asked, amusement lighting his voice.

“I-I don’t know wh-what you mean…” Cross whispered, soul racing. He gently leaned his head back against Dream’s.

Dream smiled, feeling their chests move together as they breathed. They sat like that for a long time, simply listening to one another’s soul beat. Cross was the first one to stir, though reluctantly.

“We should probably go before the homeowner’s association calls the cops on us.” He said quietly. Dream snorted.

“Is this neighborhood nice enough for one?” He asked.

“Do you wanna find out?” Cross smirked. Dream pouted.

“I suppose not.” He admitted and slowly crawled off his boyfriend.

After putting their helmets on, they drove again on the backroads, Cross swerving at times to avoid opossums and the occasional deer. Dream was always happy to see the little animals. In the city, they hardly got to see any wildlife beyond squirrels and pigeons.

He pressed his head into Cross’s back once again, this time out of exhaustion and not fright. If he didn’t need to remain lucid to stay on the vehicle, he could have fallen asleep.

“Dream!” Cross shouted, startling him. “Look!” He nodded off to the side.

Dream turned his head, watching as the trees broke to reveal a gorgeous view of the city’s skyline.

“Wow…” He breathed, smiling softly to himself. “It’s beautiful!” He called back.

“Just like you!” Cross yelled, though neither of them had time to react before Cross pulled onto the highway. Dream simply squeezed Cross, letting him know his comment was heard and appreciated.

The rest of the ride was not quite as eventful, since they moved from the outskirts and back into the city proper. Dream was sad that the night had to end so soon, though he knew it was definitely not early. The streets had been almost been abandoned.

They pulled up in front of his apartments, Cross leaving the engine running as they both disembarked and took off their helmets.

“Thanks, Cross… For everything. Really.” Dream smiled softly.

“Thank you, Dream.” Cross replied, startling Dream.

“For what?”

“For coming into my life.” Cross shrugged, grinning shyly. “Good night…” He said quietly and began to lean in.

“Good night, Cross…” Dream whispered and stood on his tippy toes, meeting Cross halfway.

The kiss was soft but charged with the delicate energy of two people truly meeting for the first time in such an embrace. They lingered there until Dream’s calves finally couldn’t hold him up any longer. His feet fell back to the ground, the skeleton letting a soft sound out as he landed. He smiled at Cross again.

“Good night.” He said with finality.

“Good night.” Cross echoed before straightening up and watching Dream walk back inside. Dream turned when he reached the door, waved softly, lingered, then finally went in.

Cross sighed happily before putting his helmet on and climbing onto his bike. As he sped into the neon glow of the city’s night, he thought to himself:

_‘And thank you, Ink.’_

* * *

 

After proclaiming their love for one another, Ink and Error had had their first real “sleepover.”

The other times they had stayed in one another’s beds was after sex, but this time, no sex was had. Ink refused to let Error go back to his apartment, but neither were really in the mood, so they had laid together, each in their underwear and a T-shirt, falling asleep in one another’s arms.

Ink had finally gotten his fairytale wakeup, too.

He had woken up first, once again spooned into the gentle curve of Error’s body. This time, he turned around in the other’s arms as softly as possible, not wanting to wake him. He watched Error sleeping, the skeleton finally looking peaceful. Even when Error was watching Undernovela, he was tense. But now, lying beside him, Error’s face was relaxed, his body soft Ink gently ran his fingertips down the length of his jaw, his touch featherlight. He couldn’t help himself.

Error smiled gently in his sleep, as if knowing, even while unconscious, what the artist’s touch felt like. Ink’s eyes shifted to hearts, encouraged to continue his ministrations. His fingers lingered, not wanting to let go of this quiet moment.

Error’s eyes slowly opened, his eyes lazily focusing on Ink. He smiled.

“Good morning…” He muttered, gently raising a hand to cover Ink’s.

“Good morning…” Ink whispered, leaning in.

They had shared a few morning kisses, but none quite like this. To sleep next to someone, your bodies not spent from the night before, to simply hold them, to wake up next to them and have them as the first thing on your mind, the first thing that you see, was something magical. To kiss them was extraordinary.

They parted, Ink’s eyes moving into different shapes once more, though he continued to smile.

“We should celebrate.” He announced softly, not wanting to break the morning stillness.

“What should we do?” Error asked, a soft smile still on his face. He still looked relaxed, calm… Like Ink was the only person in the entire universe who could provide him with this peace.

“We should cook.”  

“That didn’t turn out so well for you last time…” Error made a soft sound of amusement.

“It won’t be me and Blue this time.” Ink pointed out. “You’re much more responsible than me, but I have the artistic creativity to take it to the next level.”

“…We should probably just stick to a recipe.”

“That might be for the best.” Ink agreed.

 

* * *

 

Reaper arrived at the café exactly at 2 o’clock pm, the time written on the note that Geno had sent to him, since they had barely seen each other. It had been a busy week for Geno, so Reaper couldn’t even bother him during his lunch hour. He did spy Geno in the breakroom, stuffing granola bars in his mouth and downing it with a cup of coffee. They had simply waved at each other and Geno went on.

Although he had arrived exactly at 2 o’clock, it was now 3 o’clock.

And Geno was nowhere in sight.

The pathologist drummed his fingers on the table. He didn’t have Geno’s number… He had never gotten the chance to ask. He didn’t think it was like Geno to not show up on time, or forget, but he couldn’t even text him to ask if he was alright.

The worst part of the waiting was the cats.

At first, he thought it was cute that Geno had asked to meet at a cat café. Maybe he really liked cats. But the cats here crawled on top of everything, not a care in the world. Reaper wondered how the health department hadn’t been called on this place. On top of that, the cats absolutely LOVED him.

They were crawling all over him, all trying to pile into his lap, but most were happy to curl up on the table or crawl around his legs. The barista laughed every time he came to refill Reaper’s cup, babbling about how they seemed to like him.

Reaper had stopped fighting the cats after thirty minutes, letting them do what they wanted. He wasn’t really a cat person. Or any kind of pet person. The only exception was Life, his guinea pig. She was the best and deserved the best. These cats? Clearly not the best.

He sighed audibly and checked his phone again. An hour and a half late. His brows creased, his finger tapping increasing. If he wasn’t so stubbornly into Geno, he might have left, assuming Geno had stood him up. He tried to rationalize that Geno may have been called in, just to make himself feel better. All doctors could be called in at any time, and Geno was a resident, so it was even worse for him. Reaper had almost convinced himself of this when the barista came over, smiling awkwardly and carrying a folded piece of paper.

“Mr… Reaper?” Ccino asked tentatively.

“That’s me.” Reaper grinned at him lazily, though he felt like doing anything but grin.

“Someone named…” Ccino’s browbones wrinkled. “Geno? Called. He wanted me to give you this.” He had had to write the message because he knew he could NOT repeat it verbally to anyone, much less one of his customers.

“Thanks.” Reaper gently took the paper and watched Ccino shuffle away as quickly as he could, going to refill someone else’s cup. He grimaced inwardly as he opened the note.

_Reaper,_

_Let this be a warning for you. Don’t you EVER fucking follow me again, especially when I’m with my family. There won’t be another chance after this. Don’t fuck it up._

Reaper blinked, then let out a low chuckle.

He had underestimated Geno. It looked like he hadn’t been so sly with his… unintentional intentional stalking. Or… and he thought this was the better explanation, Geno was just that smart. At least he had given him an opportunity to make it right. He supposed showing up at the park unannounced could be construed as… creepy.

He laughed again as he tucked the note into his shirt pocket and stood, taking his mug to the counter and slipping a twenty into the tip jar.

“Thanks, kid.” He winked at the barista before turning and leaving.

Geno was going to be more of a handful than he thought. Sending him to a cat café and forcing him to wait an hour and a half before giving him the message… Diabolical. And cunning. He had known Reaper would wait for him. He probably could have even pushed it to two hours and Reaper would have still gotten the message. He felt a bit bad for the barista for having to deliver that to him. With no context, that must have seemed… even creepier than it originally was.

Consider the lesson learned, Geno.

 

* * *

 

Ink and Error decided to do their dinner on Sunday night, so that they had time to find a recipe and go shopping for ingredients. They decided on a recipe for stuffed shells, since they only really needed to make the filling from scratch. Neither were experienced cooks, though Ink was really relying on Error to be able to follow the instructions. And to remember that they were actually cooking something.

So, Sunday afternoon they went to the corner grocery store, both feeling very domestic together. There was something intimate and loving about the simple act of going to the grocery store, hand in hand, with Error holding the small basket in his free one. Ink mostly lead, though he really couldn’t remember which aisle had which food stuffs, so he relied on the signs. They lapped the store a few times, walking easily next to one another.

“Error, can you get that for me?” Ink asked, pointing to a jar of alfredo sauce on a shelf a bit too tall for him.

“No. You can climb.” Error smirked.

“You were being so cute till now!” Ink huffed.

“It’d be fun for me if you climbed.” Error offered with a small shrug.

Ink pouted.

“Fine! But only because…” He smiled shyly. It was still strange on his tongue. “I love you.”

He watched Error blush before triumphantly turning back to the shelf and placing one foot on the bottom shelf, hoisting himself up to the alfredo sauce’s level.

“Hm…” He looked to the different jars. There were some with fancy labels, and some that were household names. He wasn’t really sure what to pick. He stood there for a moment, still trying to decide, eyes changing shape with every different brand.

“Sir, you can’t get on the shelves.” A stock boy approached them, trying to look stern, but also looking like he wasn’t paid enough to enforce rules he clearly didn’t care about.

“Oh!” Ink quickly hopped down. He laughed. “Sorry about that! Would you mind getting me that jar-“

“I got it.” Error huffed and quickly plucked one from the shelf, not wanting someone else to do his job.

The stock boy shrugged and moved back to his part of the aisle, squatting down to get back to unloading his boxes.

“Jealous?” Ink asked, watching Error put the sauce in his basket.

“Of course not. I just didn’t want you to get into anymore trouble.” Error shrugged, looking away.

“You were jealous!” Ink announced, laughing. “I’ll put that information away in case I need revenge later.”

“Please don’t.” His partner huffed, moving back down the aisle. Ink quickly caught up to him, slipping his hand back into place.

“I will.” Ink stated. He pulled out their small list, checking for anything they had missed. “We still need garlic bread.”

“Frozen or from the bakery?”

“From the bakery! It’s not that much more, usually.” Ink huffed and began pulling Error towards where he thought the bakery was. “We should get dessert too! We could get chocolate cake again.”

“I eat more than chocolate cake, you know.”

“Right. Chocolate ice cream, chocolate cheesecake, chocolate muffins, pain au chocolat…” Ink counted on his free hand’s fingers.

“Ugh, stop, I get it.” Error rolled his eyes. “We can get something besides chocolate. Whatever you want.”

Ink’s mind briefly remembered Chara telling him that Error would eat chocolate off of any surface. He made himself blush at the not-so-angelic images it brought up.

“Hm…” He hummed, trying to distract himself. “Pudding.”

“Pudding?” Error cocked a browbone.

“You’re right… Maybe not pudding cups…” Ink tried to think again. “Wait… Why am I leading this expedition? Don’t you know this store better than me? You’ve lived here longer.”

Error grinned but said nothing.

“Right. My memory.” Ink concluded. “You’re gonna have to stop being so thoughtful.”

“Never.” Error laughed as they finally got to the bakery.

“Here it is!” Ink picked up one of the foil-wrapped loaves of bread, sliding it into the basket. “Now for dessert…” He looked around the small area.

Error looked down, feeling a buzzing in his pocket. He let himself be pulled by Ink while he maneuvered his phone out. Cross.

“Hey, it’s Cross.” He told his boyfriend. “Why don’t you pick something out while I talk to him?”

“Okay!” Ink chirped, moving into the sea of tables piled high with different sweets.

Error pressed the button.

“Hey.” He said. “You never told me what happened with Drea-“

“We’re dating.” Cross interrupted.

“Wait… what? I thought he was pretty…”

“He said he didn’t want me to move on. And a lot of other stuff, but that’s basically what he said. So, we’re dating.”

“I’ll be damned. Kissing a random stranger really did work for you.”

“He wasn’t a random stranger. Just kind of a stranger… But, Error, I won’t be able to bring him around Ink.”

Error sighed.

“I know. I understand.”

“I still want you to hang out with him, sometime. I think… Getting to know you will help him.”

Error snorted.

“You think that would help him? Whatever happened between him and Ink is between them, but do you really think he could look at me and _not_ think about what I have that he didn’t? I don’t think that’s a real good idea right now, Cross. Not until you two are… settled.”

There was silence on that other line.

“You’re right. We’ll hold off on that. But someday… How’s Ink? He seemed really… down, when we left.”

“He’s fine. Turns out he was jealous.”

“Jealous? Of what?”

“Chara.”

Cross laughed.

“Chara? That’s hilarious.”

“It’s kind of funny now but… I kind of told him I loved him.”

“What?!”

“He said it back.” Error rationalized, blushing softly.

“You make fun of me for kissing Dream, but you just said the L Word to someone you haven’t known very long. You can’t say anything about me now.”

“I’ll say whatever I damn well please. It just… feels right…”

Cross sighed.

“I know… you’re not one to rush into things. I’m happy for you.”

“I’m happy for you too… I gotta go. We’re at the grocery store and I think he walked off.”

“You’re grocery shopping together.”

A pause.

“Wow. One ‘I love you’ and you’re ready to settle down.” Cross continued.

“Shut up! We’re cooking dinner together.”

Cross cackled.

“That doesn’t make it sound any better!”

Error pulled his phone away, hanging up. Screw Cross.

He scanned the bakery area, looking for any signs of his little artist, but found none. He turned and walked towards the frozen foods, thinking Ink might have gone off in search of something cold. After walking up and down the length of the aisles and not seeing him, Error began to get worried. He took a breath to steady himself. Ink would call him if he was really lost.

He turned to go back to the bakery to wait for Ink, since he would probably wander back there when he found whatever he was looking for, assuming he remembered that’s where he left Error. He spotted Ink up the way, grinning at him. It looked like he had found what he had been looking for.

“Error, look!” Ink offered him a package.

“Pudding.” Error stated, looking down at them.

Ink smiled and shrugged.

“I couldn’t stop thinking about it after I said it.”

“They’re vanilla. You could’ve at least got butterscotch.”

Ink grinned and produced another pack of pudding from behind his back.

“And chocolate. So, we can have both.”

“We’re gonna have a lot of pudding for a while.”  

 

* * *

 

Error was the head chef in the kitchen, reading the recipe and the packages, telling Ink what to do. Ink could at least bring the pot of water to a boil and put the shells in. He watched as Error mixed everything for the stuffing, smiling gently. He only wished they had bought some candles… Make it a little more romantic.

“Okay…” Error gently poked at the shells, trying to gauge whether or not they were ready. “I think it’s time to stuff.”

After draining them, the two worked side by side at the small counter, putting the filling in and placing them onto a baking dish.

“It already smells so good…” Ink sighed happily.

“We’ll have to wait and see if it tastes good…” Error frowned slightly, placing the last one in the dish. “You want to pour the sauce on top?”

“Yeah!” Ink quickly scooped up the jar, twisting off the lid and pouring it onto their handiwork, trying to make sure each shell got the proper amount. “There we go.”

Error took the dish and slid it into the oven, setting the timer.

“I guess now we just have to wait.” He shrugged. He started to clean the dishes and utensils they had already dirtied.

“You’re so cleanly.” Ink smiled and watched him, there not being enough room for him to help out. A situation just fine with him.

“Someone has to be.” Error shrugged.

“What? Your brothers weren’t clean as kids?”

“They were boys… I was just the weird one that liked everything clean… uncluttered…”

“I can see that.” Ink glanced around the apartment. Nothing was out of place, save for what they were using to cook. “I’ve been wondering…”

“Yeah?”

“What’s up with the baseball thing with Fresh?” Ink paused, then added, “I get that it was to help him recover but… Why not just catch the ball?”

“…” Error set the last bowl in the dish drainer, drying his hands and turning to face his lover.

“You don’t have to tell me.” Ink said quickly, smiling reassuringly.

“It’s nothing bad.” Error laughed. “I played baseball.”

“You played baseball? Like little league?”

“No… I was on varsity, both in junior high and high school. Fresh wanted more than just to play catch, since he knew I could do more.”

“Wow…” Ink sighed. “I want to see you in a baseball uniform.”

“You could just…Google my name and ‘baseball’ and probably find some pictures.”

“Why would I be able to Google your name and get high school pictures of you? Seems a bit creepy…” Ink frowned, but took out his phone anyway. He saw he had a missed call from Blue, but he’d just call him back later.

“It’s not really creepy.” Error laughed, crossing his arms and leaning back against the counter, watching him.

“Woah… Wait!” Ink’s eyes turned to exclamation marks. “You played in college?!”

Error nodded and grinned.

“It’s how I got a full ride for undergrad.”

Ink looked back down at him phone, scrolling through the pictures. Error really was handsome in a baseball uniform… Not to mention the pants hugged his legs in all the right places.

“It says you turned down a minor league position? Isn’t that really good?” He frowned.

“Yeah… It’s usually the first step to going to the majors. But I wanted to do other things with my life.”

“You could’ve made so much money!” He gasped. Error gently touched his cheek and smiled.

“But I wouldn’t have met you.”

Ink frowned and blushed.

“I guess you’re right.” He huffed. Error gently kissed his forehead before pulling back.

“I think it’s time to put in the bread.” He said, going back to cooking.

Even though it had been a team effort, it seemed that Error had done most of the work. When they finally sat down on the couch to eat, Ink took one bite of his pasta before his eyes changed to stars and he let out a groan.

“It’s so good!” He sighed happily.

“I guess we make a good team.” Error laughed before biting into one of his own. It really was good. Chara would probably be proud of him. Probably for eating something other than frozen pizza and take out, but it was still something.

“Mm… yeah…” Ink took another bite. “Now something else is bothering me.”

“What?” Error frowned slightly, wondering just what the problem was now.

“Why baseball? For you to get into?”

“Ah… It was supposed to be an outlet for my anger issues as a kid.”

“Anger issues?”

“Uh… I was never exactly the best kid. I got in a lot of fights because kids made fun of the way me and Geno looked… I think the last straw for my mom was what happened after Fresh’s accident.”

“What happened?” Ink titled his head, though he continued to stuff food in his mouth.

“I kind of… beat the shit out of the kid that pushed him.” Error laughed awkwardly. “That’s when I started going to the therapist and working on my haphephobia and anger problems…”

“Did it work? Baseball?”

Error shrugged.

“Mildly. I worked really hard at it, but I still punched people a lot. At least it got me free college.”

“How come you don’t punch people now?”

Error shrugged.

“I guess I’m getting old.” He laughed, then looked softly at Ink. “How come you don’t talk about your family?” He asked quietly. Ink frowned. “You don’t have to answer that.”

Ink shook his head.

“No, it’s fine. I don’t talk about them because I don’t have any.”

Error frowned.

“I’m sorry, Ink.”

Ink smiled and shrugged.

“I’m kind of… okay with it now. Blue and Dream helped me through a lot after I moved to their town. I got placed in my final foster home, then the two of them became my family. I owe them a lot. That’s why…”

“Why you dated Dream?”

Ink frowned.

“Who told you?” He asked, almost accusatorily.

“No one. Cross has said some stuff, but nothing substantial. I kind of put two and two together.” Error shrugged. Ink smiled sadly.

“Yeah… He asked me out at graduation and I… I thought I could like him like that, one day. But he’s really more like…” Ink frowned and looked up at the ceiling. “Like a brother.” He sighed.

“A brother that’s never going to speak to me again.”

Error put a hand gently on his shoulder.

“You don’t know that. Give him some time. After all, he just got a new boyfriend.” He grinned.

Ink’s eyes changed to stars again.

“He did?! Who is it!? How’d you know?!”

Error laughed.

“Yes. Cross. Cross, again.” Error answered.

“This is so exciting! Kind of.” Ink frowned. “I don’t think he and Cross are really… Compatible. But I’m happy if they’re happy.”

“That’s kind of shallow.”

“You’ve seen them! They’re really different.”

“We’re really different.”

Ink stopped, looking at Error. He traced his face with his eyes.

“You’re right.” He grinned. “I shouldn’t judge on looks.”

“Good.” Error nodded and lifted his fork. “Now say, ‘ah’.”

“Ahhhh!” Ink said happily, opening his mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just FYI Reaper's guinea pig is NOT this AU's version of Life. He just named her that. (But if you want to picture a Toriel-looking guinea pig, no one's stopping you.) 
> 
> Also I'm trying to work out a schedule for this fic because I feel like you guys would probably appreciate that. This should update twice a week, as is usual. I have one day planned, but the other is in flux for a while since the school term just started and I also have a crazy week ahead of me. So we'll figure it out! I'll announce it when I figure it out. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	17. A Lovely Couple

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ink and Error begin to make plans for the future, but not necessarily together.

Unfortunately, Monday morning came, and the two lovebirds were awoken by the screech of Ink’s alarm.

“Stars, Ink!” Error cried as he slapped his hands over his ears. “Why the fuck would you have that as your alarm?!”

Ink laughed sleepily as he turned it off.

“Good morning to you to.” He turned over and wrapped his arms around Error, pulling him close. “I hit the snooze…” He purred.

“Oh hell no.” Error sat up and grabbed the phone from where Ink had left it on the bed. “I’m NOT hearing that again. Ever. For the rest of my life.”

Ink pouted.

“You wanna sleep next to me, right? Then you have to hear it!” He cried, also sitting up. He watched as Error shut the alarm off for good.

“We’re going to change it, in that case.” He was already flipping through the different pre-added ringtones.

“It’s my favorite, though.” Ink whined.

“Why the hell would it be your favorite? Do you LIKE waking up with a heart attack?” Error landed on a tone that was birds chirping with a stereotypical trill of music in the background. “There.” He handed the phone back to his lover.

“But I won’t wake up to that one.” Ink crossed his arms. Error smirked.

“If we’re waking up together, then _I’ll_ wake you up. Okay?”

“Deal.” Ink started wiggling out of the warm sheets, having to crawl over his partner to get out. “Can I use your shower again?” He asked.

“You have a shower.” Error huffed. “Besides, I have to shower too.”

Ink grinned.

“We could compromise, and both use your shower.”

“That makes no sense.” Error sat back, fatigue finally hitting him after his shocking wakeup.

“Hm… Doesn’t it?” Ink’s grin grew. Error blinked before understanding.

“Don’t even. You’ll be late.” Error began to slide out.

“We’ll be quick.” Ink assured.

“NO. Now get dressed and go to your apartment. I’ll meet you in thirty.” Error gently stretched, his spine cracking.

“Fine. But know you missed out on an excellent opportunity for shower sex.” Ink huffed, sliding on his shirt and pants, forgetting the underwear.

“I think there will be plenty of opportunities for that, sex pistol. Now go get ready. Chara’s gonna be pissed when she realizes you forgot to give her keys back.”

“Oh shit!” Ink cried, bounding towards the door in an unadulterated panic. “I gotta go!”

 

* * *

 

Error walked him to his platform and kissed him gently on the forehead, as per usual.

“See you after work?” He asked.

Ink grinned and nodded.

“Have a good day.” Error smiled at him.

“You’re forgetting something.” Ink rolled on the balls of his feet.

“What?” Error paused, then sighed, though it was a happy kind of sigh. The kind an infatuated skeleton makes. “Love you.”

“Love you too!” Ink quickly bounced up, giving Error a soft peck before pulling back. “Have a good day, too.”

He turned and headed for the train, slipping on and plopping down into a seat. He looked back, seeing Error still standing there. He waved gently, and once Error responded, he blew the black skeleton a kiss. Error blushed and begrudgingly raised his hand and scooped it from the air. Ink turned back around, facing two small, elderly ladies who had been watching him, giggling to themselves.

“I remember when Hugh and I were like that…” One crooned.

“Well, Laudie and I never lost _our_ spark.” The other trumped.

Ink smiled to himself, listening to the two of them squabble over whose marriage was better. Usually he would bring out his sketchbook, but today he simply basked in the warm glow that continued to surround him, even though the weekend was over. He thought, briefly, that it was odd Error had watched him go, but perhaps he, too, was trapped in the all-consuming vortex they had created when they exchanged those three simple words.

Everything would be different now, wouldn’t it? He already felt like it was. They hadn’t spent a moment apart since Error had recited that ancient spell of seemingly harmless morphemes which were dripping with inexplicable emotion. How long had it been now? Like a month? And a few days? It was like their meeting was fate. Something written in the stars. If their connection wasn’t proof of that, then the simple fact that no more cockroaches had appeared in Error’s apartment was. The universe had sent them only so they could meet. He should be thanking those cockroaches. Perhaps pray, since they were no longer of this world.

When his stop was announced, he snapped back to reality, feeling his eyes slide out of the heart shapes they had been stuck on. He saw the two ladies giggling again, peeking out at him from behind their newspapers. He grinned at them and stood.

“Sir…” One of them began shyly. He turned back to her.

“Yeah?” He asked, still grinning.

“I wish you the best of luck and happiness with him. I think you found the real thing.”

“Thank you!” He stumbled a bit as the train stopped. “I think I have too.”

 

* * *

When he reached the gallery, Chara was waiting for him, arms crossed and looking peeved. He smiled sheepishly, taking the keys out before he even got within earshot.

“Thanks.” She grumbled, taking them and sliding one into the door.

“Sorry?” He offered with a soft shrug. “Won’t happen again.”

“You’re right.” She huffed, leading the way in so she could turn off the alarm. However, Ink had also forgotten to set it. She sighed. “Today, you will be given a test. If you pass, you’ll pass your trial period.”

“What?” Ink blinked, eyes changing quickly. “Really?”

“Of course! It’s about time. Two clients are coming in and you’ll be handling them on your own this time. I’m going to pull their file so you can study it before they get here this afternoon. They’re looking for something for their dog’s room, if that helps.” Chara began leading him downstairs.

“Their dog has a room?” Ink snickered slightly. Chara couldn’t help but laugh a little as well.

“Yes. She’s basically their child, since they weren’t ever able to have one.” She went to one of the filing cabinets and searched, fingering the manila folders gently. She stopped with a huff and pulled one out, turning and handing it to Ink. “Here. You’ll also find their other purchases in there, so you can get a sense of what they like.”

Ink grinned and greedily opened the file, quickly scanning their basic information.

“They seem really… Eccentric.” He mumbled.

“But they’re rich eccentrics.” Chara noted.

“One’s a… magician?” Ink blinked.

“A very famous one.”

“And the other's an astronomer?”

“Very good at what he does. Publishes a lot of papers, gives talks to lots of important people. They’re nice, though.” Chara smiled. “I think you’ll like them. You have a lot in common.”

“Like what?” Ink smiled and looked up from the file.

“You’re all helplessly in love!” She squealed.

“Who told you?!” Ink jumped back.

“What?” Chara cocked her head to the side.

“Who told you that me and Error said, ‘I love you’ over the weekend?”

“No one told me.” Chara snorted. “It was obvious Friday night. By the way… how are you feeling? You were pretty down there at the end.”

“Oh, that’s a funny story.” Ink laughed. “I was really jealous of you, so I was sad, and then Error asked me what’s wrong, so I had to tell him. I can’t lie to him, you know? You’ve seen his adorable face. Anyway, I told him I was jealous, and he just kind of blurted, ‘I love you!’ and it was the most romantic thing that’s ever happened to me! Besides our first date. You should have seen those flowers, Chara. I think that’s where I’ll propose one day. Right there, in those flowers…” He sighed. “Wait. What were we talking about again?”

Chara, who had spaced out in the middle of that thoughtless blabber, snapped back to attention only when she heard the word ‘propose.’

“You’re going to propose to him?!” She shrieked.

“Someday!” Ink laughed happily. Chara let out a sigh of relief. She could not, in good conscience, let Ink propose to Error right now.

“Setting that aside… let’s go get ready to open up.” Chara all but ran up the stairs.

“What’d I say?” Ink asked himself before heading up the stairs as well.

 

* * *

 

Ink had spent most of the morning studying his potential clients’ file while also perusing the current works hanging in their gallery, trying to find the right fit. They had a few walk-ins, though Chara happily took them so Ink could focus on getting this right. If he was able to start taking clients himself, he could start earning commission, and that would give him a much more comfortable life.

Being around art, and sometimes dealing with the artists themselves, not only inspired Ink, but it also made him almost… dissatisfied with his current situation. He did love his work, but if he had a choice between being a full-time artist and this job, he would take the former any day. But becoming a recognized artist took time, patience, hard work, and mostly, luck.

He was sitting at his desk, poking at the leftover stuffed shells he had found in a glass container, tucked neatly in his bag earlier that morning, when his phone rang. He checked the caller ID and jumped.

Blue.

“H-Hey Blue!” He said cheerily.

“You never called me back yesterday, buddy.” Blue said, no accusation in his tone. He was too good for this world.

“Sorry! I was um…” Ink thought back to the night before. “Busy.”

“Busy?” Blue laughed softly. “With Error, I guess?”

“That would be correct.” Ink laughed. “What’d ya need?”

“So, your boss… Chara… She texted me yesterday.”

“Yeah? I gave her your number.”

“That’s what she said… But WHY?!”

Ink laughed nervously.

“I just thought you guys had chemistry so…”

“I need help. What do I say?”

Ink smiled to himself. He had guessed correctly that his friend was interested. He just needed a little push. And Ink had pushed a lioness into his inbox.

“Did you answer her?” Ink asked.

“Of course! I’m not rude. Just… what? What now? Oh, I haven’t been this nervous since taking my first client.”

“And that went great!” Ink encouraged. “What do you want to say to her?”

“Um… I’d like to see her?”

“…Why don’t you try that? You could ask her out to coffee. She loves that.” Or maybe she just needed it to fuel her through the tediousness of running the gallery almost singlehandedly. He wasn’t sure which was true. Possibly both. You could love something and still use it to find the will to carry on. Though, that might really just be addiction.

“You know I don’t drink coffee...” Blue sighed.

Ink held back a groan. He had forgotten. After their senior prom they had hit up the local 24-hour breakfast house, and feeling like adults, had all ordered the bottomless coffee. Ink and Dream had felt more awake, but Blue…

Well, Blue’s brother put a strict ban on the substance after that.

“Smoothies, then?” Ink suggested. He saw Chara eat a banana once. Surely, she liked it in liquid form as well.

“Smoothies! That’s perfect, Ink! Any other advice?”   

“Hm… Be yourself! And um… don’t be intimidated.” Ink thought back to Chara’s declaration that she wanted to antagonize the small skeleton.

“Why would I be intimidated? She seemed fine when I met her.” Blue sounded muddled.

Ink thought about it. Chara had seemed a bit… tamer when Blue had been around. They’d probably be good for each other. At least, _he_ thought so.

“You’re right. Don’t worry about it. I gotta go though. My lunch break’s almost up.” Ink smiled.

“Alright! Thanks for the advice! Have a good one.”

“You too.” Ink smiled and hung up, turning back to his pasta. He hoped the best for the two of them. But, no one could be quite so perfect for each other like him and Error. They were a hard record to break.

After finishing his thoughtfully packed lunch, Ink went back up to the main floor to wait for his clients. He had picked out a few pieces they were likely to appreciate, since one was by an artist they had purchased from before, and the other was the same style. He was excited, and nervous. He wanted to text Error, but he also wanted to surprise him in case he made the sale. If he made the sale, then started making commission, he could save up enough money to move out of those small, dingy apartments. And he and Error could get a giant bed, with plush sheets, and a bathroom with a bathtub large enough to fit both of them so they could take bubble baths together…

He stopped himself, flushing.

He really was moving a bit fast with this, wasn’t he?

In his defense, it would take him quite a while to save up for said apartment. By then, it would be socially acceptable for them to move in together. Yeah. That would be fine.

He took a deep breath through his nasal cavities, steeling himself. Everything rode on this sale. He could do it. He could do it. He. Could. Do. It!

The door opened.

A cleanly dressed, tall skeleton stepped in, dressed somewhat casually in a pair of jeans, a T-shirt, and a black suit jacket over it. There were markings on his face, a line leading away from each eye, though the lines moved in opposite directions. There were cracks in his skull, but before Ink had a true chance to take him in, his husband, who had been holding the door for him, walked in.

He looked similar to his spouse, with similar markings on his face, though he stood a bit taller than the other. He was dressed a bit more flamboyantly than his husband, wearing a red suit with a matching top hat.

Ink grinned politely, his self-confidence wilting with every second he stared at them.

“Thank you, darling.” The first to enter said, their hands meeting in a gently grasp. The other smiled before leaning down and pressing a soft kiss to the top of the other’s head.

“It’s nothing, dearest.” They held each other’s gaze, as if the only thing that mattered at that moment was the other, as if the only thing that existed in the entire universe was the two of them.

Ink blushed, heart racing.

He supposed he knew now what Chara had meant.

He slowly approached the two.

“Hello! Welcome to the Dree-“

“Ink?” The one in the top hat asked, gracefully taking the obtrusive article of clothing off. Ink felt like he could have watched that all day. If that was how he simply took his hat off, how did he perform his magic?

“Yes? I mean, yes! That’s me.” Ink smiled.

“Wonderful. Chara let us know you’d be helping us today.” The smaller one smiled at him. Ink couldn’t help but squirm under his gaze. He wasn’t sure what the look in his eyes was, but it was warm and tender, and something Ink wasn’t used to seeing from someone other than Error.

“Great! So, I went ahead and singled out a few pieces I think you’d like, but of course the entire gallery is open. I’m sure you also know that some of our artists are open for commissions as well. If not, we can always ask them to place you on their waitlist.” Ink explained, running through the script he had mostly memorized. “You can follow me, Mr. Gaster and Mr. Aster.”

The two of them chuckled.

“Just Gaster is fine.” The magician said.

“And Aster is perfectly acceptable as well.” The other continued to smile at him.

“Well, alright!” Ink smiled again. “Rights this way, sirs.”

He led the couple through the gallery pointing out paintings he thought they might like, and specifically the ones he had picked out beforehand. The two squabbled between themselves, though it was more like soft, playful banter.

“This one would look good in Lucy’s room, right?” Aster asked.

“I don’t know if Lucy would really like it…” Gaster frowned.

“It’s not for the dog, it’s for the room.” Aster huffed.

Ink laughed softly.

The two men smiled bashfully and exchanged a glance.

“I bet we seem like old fools to you.” Gaster smiled.

“Not at all! You… just remind me of me and my boyfriend.” Ink blushed softly.

The two of them seemed to perk up at the mention of Ink’s beau.

“Oh? What’s he like?” Aster asked.

“Surely not as stubborn as you.” Gaster commented, earning a soft jab in the ribs.

“He’s pretty stubborn.” Ink laughed. “I don’t really know where to start… I guess he’s just…” He paused. “Amazing.”

The two grinned at him.

“How long have you been together?” Gaster asked.

“Well, only about a month…” Ink looked to the side. “Not very long, I know.”

“It seems you love him a lot.” Aster offered. Ink blushed.

“I do!” Ink grinned. “I know people think it’s too fast, though. I know they’re happy for me, but I guess they’re worried.”

Gaster put his arm over Aster’s shoulders.

“We only knew each other for six months before eloping together. Everyone was in quite a shock.” He smiled down at his lover.

“But we’ve been together twenty years. Falling quickly doesn’t always mean the love isn’t true. Sometimes when you know, you know.” Aster gently patted Gaster’s arm.

Ink’s eyes turned to stars.

“That’s exactly what Error said!” He gasped. The two men laughed.

“We wish the two of you the best of luck.” Aster replied, still smiling. He could see himself in Ink. Young, inexperienced, helplessly in love with someone he would tear the world apart for.

Gaster looked thoughtful.

“Ink, which painting do _you_ think would look good in Lucy’s room?” He asked.

“I guess that would depend on the color scheme of the room…” Ink’s eyes slid over the paintings.

Aster looked at his husband and smiled, understanding what he was trying to do. He pulled out his phone.

“Don’t think about color schemes.” He informed Ink, handing him the phone. On the screen was a picture of a large, white fluffy dog lying languidly on a gray couch, grinning at the photographer. Ink smiled.

“Awww…” He cooed.

“What do you think she would like?” Aster prompted.

Ink’s eyes changed to question marks as he studied the image. His brows creased in concentration, taking in the dog, with her bright blue eyes and her pink tongue rolling out the side of her mouth.

“I got it!” He sprung up, startling his two clients. “This way!”

Ink led them to a corner of the gallery, where a painting had been hanging for a long while. The price had been lowered several times to entice buyers, but no one took the bait. It was a playful piece, filled with color and excitement.

“Ta-da!” Ink gestured to the painting.

“This one?” Aster asked, looking the painting up and down. “Why?” He turned back to Ink.

“Lucy… She’s very energetic. And happy. And lively! You can read it on her face.” He nodded to himself. “This painting is titled ‘In Jesting’. When I look at Lucy’s smile in the picture, I can imagine she would tell a lot of jokes if she could talk! She’d be a bit like her dads.” He smiled at them.

The husbands exchanged a knowing smile.

“Alright, we’ll take it.” Gaster announced. Ink blinked.

“Really?” He asked.

“Really.” Aster looked back to the painting. “You perfectly described Lucy, and this painting. It’s the exact thing we need.”

“Oh! That’s great!” Ink grinned. “I’ll be happy to finish the purchase for you.”

“That would be lovely.” Gaster returned his smile.

 

* * *

 

Ink was floating on a triumphant cloud the rest of the day. His first sale! Chara had laughed and given him his own set of keys along with a, ‘Welcome to the family.’, before he had to get back to work. His clients had been great, and had even given him their cards, telling him to call them sometime. That they’d love to get coffee or something with him. (They also told him they could always call them for advice in the love department, if he ever needed an outsider’s opinion.) Ink smiled and placed the cards in his bag. The two of them almost felt like… fathers, in a weird sense. He would definitely be calling them. Maybe he’d bring Error with him too. They’d like that.

As he was sweeping the floors close to the end of their day, all he could think about was how his plan was coming together. At first, Error had not been a part of them, but he was a happy addition. He would work here and save up money, then he would be able to get a really nice apartment, where he and Error had enough room to breathe. Then, after living there for a while, he would save up again. Error needed a nice ring, after all. Then he would take him to the park, whisper into the flower, and Error would be so moved that he would weep and throw decorum to the wind, shouting his assent and flinging himself at Ink.

Okay, that last part might be pushing it a bit.

He sighed happily as he picked up his bag, ready to go home. He was going to tell Error about his victory, and then they would celebrate. With what, he wasn’t sure. Probably Thai.

“Want to lock the door?” Chara asked as they headed out, grinning.

“Yeah!” Ink cried happily, pulling out his set of keys. “Now which one is it…” He gently thumbed through them.

“This one.” Chara stopped him.

“Thanks!” Ink laughed slightly before sliding the key into the lock, twisting it. “There!”

Chara checked the handle.

“Good to go.” She smiled and turned her head, letting out a low whistle. “Damn, Ink. Who knew you were special enough for _that?”_

“For what?” Ink blinked, following her gaze. His eyes widened. He felt like he could have fainted at the sight.

Error was a bit up the sidewalk, leaning against the brick, dressed in an expertly fitted suit. One hand gripped a suitcase, and the other was raised in greeting.

“I-I-I don’t know…” Ink whispered.

Chara snickered, waving back at Error.

“Don’t melt on the sidewalk. I don’t want to scrape you off. Go to him.” She gently nudged Ink forward. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She turned and walked in the opposite direction.

Ink stayed rooted to the spot, simply staring. If he had been a smart skeleton, he would have taken out his phone to capture this moment forever. Error. In a suit. Waiting on him.

Error got tired of waiting and peeled himself away from the wall, walking towards him. Seeing him in motion did things to Ink. Exciting and unsettling things. He had to steady himself so as not to fall unconscious and disrupt the flow of pedestrian traffic. Safety first.

“Why are you just standing there?” Error asked once he was close enough.

“I-I…” Ink mumbled, looking Error up and down. As much as he loved him in the suit, it also made him want to rip it off. “You’re hot.”

Error blinked, then began laughing.

“Damn… The first time you saw me you stared… I’m glad I’ve still got it.” He smirked and leaned in.

Ink could barely feel Error as they kissed. His senses were overwhelmed. He even smelled nice. Well, nicer than usual. Like he was trying to impress someone. Ink kept his arms prudently at his sides, not trusting them to behave.

“W-why?” He asked once they separated.

“I had a job interview.” Error grinned, clearly enjoying Ink’s discomfort. If he got the job… well, Ink was in for a world of hurt. He would have a litany of suits for him to drool over.

“J-job interview?” Ink could barely think straight. He could feel himself digging his way out of the muddled mess his mind was, like that archaeologist he saw in that one movie.

“Yeah. For a real job. Because I’m graduating in a little over a month?” Error smiled.

“Oh… yeah!” Ink finally broke through the fog. “Where is it?”

“A pretty big security company. It’s actually in this area. I thought I’d come pick you up.” He shrugged and gently took Ink’s hand, beginning to steer him towards the subway station.

“Oh… When will you know?” Ink picked up his pace, all but skipping next to him.

“I have a second interview next week. So, after that.” Error smiled.

“Good luck!” Ink chirped. “Wait, why didn’t you tell me before?”

“Because I wanted to surprise you.” Error laughed.

“You really did…” Ink eyed his suit once again. “Oh! I have news too!"

“Yeah?” Error asked.

“I sold my first painting all on my own today! I’m now a full member of the team!” Ink grinned, watching as Error’s face also lit up.

“Congratulations!” He offered, coming to a halt. Ink stumbled slightly.

“Why’re we stopping?” Ink asked, question marks for eyes.

“We have to celebrate, right?” Error grinned.

“Yeah!” Ink said happily.

“And we’re both dressed nicely, right?”

“Yeah!” Ink echoed himself.

“So, we should go out. Probably somewhere here.”

“Yeah!” Ink cried. “Wait, isn’t it a bit expensive around here?”

“A bit. Doesn’t that make it worth it to celebrate here?”

“I… guess?” Ink laughed slightly. “Whatever you want to do.”

“This is about you. What do you want to do?” Error asked, turning to face him.

Ink frowned in thought, then relaxed into a smile.

“I want one of those hotdogs again.”

“…a hotdog?” Error frowned.

“From the food truck place! That’s what I want.” Ink grinned.

Error studied him for a moment, then sighed, smiling.

“Okay, we’ll go get hotdogs.”

“Can I have something else?” Ink smiled as they began to walk again.

“What?”

“Can I take your clothes off as soon as we get home?”

“Why are you like this?” Error sighed deeply.

“It’s _my_ celebration!”

“Fine.”

“Error plea- wait, what?”

“I said fine.”

“Aw, you really do love me.” A pause. “Can I also eat you out again?”

“You just ruined the moment, you know that, right?”

“I can’t help it. The soul wants what it wants. So… Can I?”

“I guess.”

“Error! I love you!”

 

* * *

 

Reaper began the monotonous routine of beginning his rounds in the morgue.

Say hi to that guy, tell that gal to start prep, check to see who was coming for pickup…

The usual.

And as is generally the norm, not too long into his shift a gurney was rolled in, a corpse tucked away neatly under a clean sheet.

“Pediatrics.” The attendant said before leaving.

Reaper gritted his teeth and gently shook his head. Since the body came straight from pediatrics, the kid was probably sick and thus no autopsy needed to be performed. He went to gurney, taking the file. One of the mortuary assistants came over, ready to make a tag for the newly deceased. He waited patiently as Reaper tenderly folded back the sheet.

A human child, completely hairless. Cancer, then.

A human disease that even with magic they couldn’t find a cure to.

His eyes lingered on her face. She looked vaguely familiar, but she could have also just been warped from the cold transformation her body had undergone in the past hour or so. In these situations, Reaper could only tell himself that this was better. The child was no longer suffering. They were at peace.

It was utter bullshit and didn’t make him feel any better, but still, he repeated it like a mantra.

“Reaper?” The assistant asked, motioning towards the chart. He would need it to make the tag.

“Here.” He grumbled, moving to close it and hand it over, but his eyes narrowed on a single word.

He brought the chart back to himself, his stare intense enough to set the paper aflame.

Geno.

Geno had been the assisting resident.

He quickly looked back to the girl.

It was _her_.

The girl who had planted carrots. The ones Geno was supposed to look after.

The girl who had brought Geno to his attention… Into his _life._

He stared in abject horror at her face. This girl… who had only wanted her vegetables to grow strong, was lying here, months later, cold and bloated, unable to open her eyes.

“…Reaper?” The assistant was looking at him with polite concern.

He looked to him, staring but not really seeing.

His mind ran through several thoughts at once, each of them tripping over one another as they fought for dominance.

The girl.

Carrots.

Geno.

_Geno!_

Reaper finally snapped out of it, throwing the folder into his assistant’s hands.

“Take care of that.” He commanded, an edge of authority not usually present slicing through.

“Y-yes sir.” The assistant mumbled, watching as his boss fled from the morgue, stripping off his gear and barely aiming it into the proper area.

Thankfully, pediatric deaths were few and far between. They had only gotten a handful in the past year. There hadn’t been any kids that passed in the department for months. He would have noticed. He would have known if… if one of Geno’s patients had passed.

He sped towards the staff elevators, the world around him a blur.

He was focused on one thing, and one thing only.

Geno.

She had been Geno’s first.

His first patient death.

Reaper clawed his way into an elevator before the doors closed, not even muttering an apology to the nurses who occupied it.

Geno.

He wanted to get to Geno.

He _needed_ to get to Geno.

At least he knew where to find him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have finally figured out a schedule for this thing. **Updates will happen Mondays and Fridays, though time will vary since my schedule can change quickly.**
> 
>  
> 
> _Thank you for reading!_


	18. A Night Apart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The brothers go to comfort Geno, and Ink spends a night alone.

Reaper found Geno exactly where he thought he would be.

He was out in the garden, sitting on one of the few benches and staring up at the afternoon sky. He was startled out of his thoughts when the door shut, turning to look at the pathologist.

“I’m not in the mood, Reaper.” He sighed and looked back towards the heavens. “I’m not sorry about standing you up.”

“I’m not here about that.” Reaper frowned and took the seat next to the red-scarfed skeleton. He stuck his hands in his physician’s coat’s pockets, staring at the flowerbeds in front of them. It was this one. The one with the carrots. Did Geno remember, too?

“What do you want, then?” Geno was clearly tired.

“I wanted to check on you.”

Geno blinked and looked over to his companion.

“Why?”

“I saw her.” Reaper finally slid his eyes to meet Geno’s. “Contrary to popular belief, I don’t know everything about you. But I know she was your first.”

Geno stared at him for a moment, taking this… new Reaper in. He wasn’t smirking lazily or joking. Even his posture was stiff and rugged, all angles whereas Geno had only ever seen him as smooth, languid curves. It might have unsettled him, if he hadn’t known that _he_ was the reason for the sudden change. Reaper was even sitting far enough away to give him any needed space. It distracted Geno from the event for a brief second. He finally looked away.

“Yeah… She was.” He sighed.

They stayed like that for a while, sitting in silence and each of them focusing on the soil that showed a few sprouts breaking through the crust.

“How do you do it?” Geno asked quietly. Reaper looked to him softly.

“Do what?” He asked softly, trying not to disturb the unspoken, sacred peace that had settled around the holy garden. They were like two guardian angels, watching over the last earthly thing connecting them to their divine charge.

“How do you deal with death every day?”

“…” Reaper had to think about that for a moment. “It helps that I don’t know them in life. I don’t think of them as people anymore. They’re not there, in the body. Whatever it is, it’s not them. Their lives are no longer there, their memories are gone as soon as the brain dies. But… it’s hard for me to do that with kids.”

“…I wouldn’t have thought you’d have a soft spot for children, Reaper.” Geno tried to smile at him.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me.” Reaper didn’t return his smile. He couldn’t find the will to command the corners of his mouth to tug up. “She…” He looked back to carrot sprouts. He shook his head.

“No child… ever deserves to die. It’s senseless. I know I’m not being much comfort, but…” His eyes would have bored holes into the ground. “She was special to me too.”

Geno snorted slightly, but not because he was being rude. It was just very unexpected that Reaper would even know one, _living_ patient.

“How was she special to you?” He asked. Reaper finally looked back to him, a small smile gracing his features.

“Did you take care of her carrots?” The pathologist asked. Geno blinked.

“No…?” Geno’s eye widened in horror. “Oh, stars! I forgot to take care of her carrots!” He looked back the few little sprouts. “But… they’re still growing?”

Reaper let out a bitter laugh.

“When I first saw you… When I first _really_ saw you, Geno, was when she came out here to show you her carrot seeds.” Reaper hadn’t exactly been expecting to make a confession of love or whatever this was when he came running to Geno.

“I had a bad day. Watching you with her… made me feel better. Of course, I started bothering you, but for her…” He gestured to the sprouts. “I took care of those.”

Geno blinked rapidly, trying to put all of the puzzle pieces together. He couldn’t help himself as his eye began to fill with tears. He wanted to say something… He wanted to say a lot of somethings, but no words would come out. Instead, a lonely tear fell, splattering softly on his nice dress pants. It was quickly followed by more, until Geno couldn’t stop himself.

He held in the unsightly sounds that crept up his throat, not wanting anyone to hear him, even if the only other person with him was Reaper, someone he was naturally unashamed around. Reaper reached forward timidly, pausing before gently placing his hand on Geno’s shoulder.

They sat this way a long time, Reaper’s hand a steady, constant anchor that Geno could tie himself to. A silent sea of emotions raged around them, though not even a tendril of wind stirred. When Geno had almost exasperated himself, he spoke again.

“Does it get easier?” He whispered.

“I don’t know…” Reaper answered truthfully. “It hasn’t for me.”

Geno gently reached up and placed his hand of the one sitting on his shoulder. Reaper tried not to startle, but he did look over at the younger doctor, a question on his face.

“Thanks, Reaper.” Geno tried to smile. “I… I’m glad you came for me.”

Reaper tried to smile as well, but his was a chimera against the original.

“Of course I would, Geno.” He let out a bitter laugh. “I do care about you.”

“I can see that.” Geno looked back down. “I’m still not sorry about the cats.”

“I deserved it.” Reaper admitted. He pulled his hand back and took one of his cards out his pocket and scribbled something onto the back before handing it to Geno. “That’s my number. My personal cell. If you need anything, you can call me.”

He stood.

“I do have to get back to work… But if you need me, I’ll come.” He gave Geno another, sorrow-twisted smile. “Those brothers of yours… I think you should call them.”

“Why?” Geno asked.

“You need someone right now. I think it’d be good for you. They really care about you, Geno.” Reaper smiled again.

“I don’t want them to worry…” Geno shook his head.

“They’re going to worry anyway, when they find out. Unless you plan on hiding it from them?” Reaper cocked an eyebrow.

“Er…”

Reaper smiled softly.

“Just tell them. It’ll help.” Reaper nodded a goodbye.

“Reaper?” Geno stopped him.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks. Again.” He smiled.

“Of course.” Reaper smiled and turned, leaving the garden behind.

Geno sighed and pulled out his phone.

Fresh would be the best one to call first.

 

* * *

 

Ink and Error were lying in bed, curled up against one another. Ink’s celebration had gone well; he had gotten everything he asked for. Although, he did have to promise he would get Error’s suit dry cleaned for him. His mustard packet had accidentally squirted on it.

“We can drop it off tomorrow on our way to the station. There’s one right on that corner, remember? Because I do!” Ink smiled triumphantly.

“I’ll drop it off. It probably won’t be open when you leave for work.” Error sighed.

“Don’t you have to go to school?” Ink’s eyes lit up in question marks.

“Spring break.” Error shrugged.

“Why didn’t you tell me it was your spring break?” Ink asked, crossing his arms.

“Would it have made a difference in anything?”

Ink thought about it for a moment.

“Not really. It’s not like I could have taken off of work for us to do something…” He pouted. Going away on vacation sounded nice right about now. On a warm beach, sunbathing on towels… Error putting sunscreen on his back… Not that he needed sunscreen. Maybe he was thinking about romantic comedy movies too much.

“Does that mean you’ll pick me up from work again?” He asked.

“I was planning on it, but now that you asked, I don’t know if I will.” Error smirked.

“Error! How can you be so sweet and then so mean?” Ink sighed in frustration.

“I guess you’ll just have to see tomorrow if I show up.” Error shrugged.

“You’re so…” Ink frowned. “You, sometimes.”

“Could say the same for you, darling.” Error winked and Ink’s heart melted.

“I’m trying to be upset with you right now! Stop being cute.”

“I don’t try.” Error laughed.

“Please don’t. I might die.”

“Noted.”

They lay in a comfortable silence before Error gently grabbed Ink’s chin, bringing him in for a lazy, sloppy kiss. Ink laughed and tenderly kissed him back. He knew there would a day when they got into a real fight, but he hoped it wasn’t soon.

They were interrupted by loud knocking on Error’s door, to the rhythm of “Fresh Prince of Hotland.”

“Who is that?” Ink asked. “You think we were too loud?”

Error sighed.

“It’s Fresh. I guess we should get dressed.” He moved out from under the covers and went to his closet, pulling on a fresh outfit while Ink pulled on his own, dirty work clothes. When they were both decent, Error flicked on the lights and opened the door.

“Yes?” He asked grumpily. Ink perched himself on the couch, trying to look as innocent as possible.

“Can I come in?” Fresh asked. Even though he was still grinning, the tone of his voice said he was here on business.

Error didn’t even argue with him, and simply stepped aside, letting him in. Fresh moved into the apartment, setting his skateboard down and placing a duffel bag on top of it.

“Going somewhere?” Error asked.

“Yeah. Geno’s.” Fresh smiled and closed the door.

Ink wasn’t close to Fresh. Even at the picnic he hardly interacted with him. But even he could tell something important happened. He wanted to ask his own questions but decided to keep his mouth closed for once.

“What happened to Geno?” Error asked, his brows creasing. Ink watched as Error’s entire countenance morphed into one of concern, though he didn’t move at all.

“He lost a patient today. His first one.” Fresh was speaking with unusual clarity. Ink had never asked, but he had assumed Fresh’s way of talking had been from the accident. Now he realized it was an air he put on. Or, maybe, it was how he spoke when he was carefree. Considering the skeleton before him, he assumed the latter was correct.

“He… actually called you?” Error whispered. Fresh nodded solemnly.

“Yeah… Though, he said Reaper told him to.”

“Dr. Creepy.” Ink mumbled under his breath.

“Can you give me time to shower and pack? I’ll come with you.” Error declared.

“Ya don’t gotta come.” Fresh assured him. “Ya got school.”

“It’s his spring break.” Ink answered for him. “Error, if you want to shower, I’ll pack for you. How many sets of clothes do you need?”

Error stared at him for a brief moment, his eyes filled with unreadable tenderness. Ink felt like it was more intimate than the sex they had just had.

“A couple of days, I guess. I can always come back for more.”

“And a pair of pajamas.” Ink added. Error nodded. “I’ll just use your school backpack, if that’s okay?”

“Yeah, that’s perfect.” Error smiled gently at him. “I’ll go get in the shower.”

As soon as the bathroom door shut, Ink set to work. He packed a few of Error’s better pairs of jeans, because stars knew Error wouldn’t have actually packed them. He figured this was a reason for him to look somewhat nice. He ended up putting three shirts into the bag: two short sleeved ones, since it had been warm, and one long sleeved shirt in case it got cold. He packed ample pairs of underwear, since you never knew when you would need more. He added socks, though after rummaging through Error’s sock drawer he made up his mind to buy Error a few new pairs. Then, he packed a pair of pajamas, which was really just an old, heavy metal band T-shirt Error had and a pair of flannel pants.

“Ya really got it all in there, didn’t ya?” Fresh peeked over his shoulder as he set the bag down on the coffee table.

“I’m an expert in packing a lot of things into a little backpack.” Ink said proudly.

“Lots of camping? Hiking?” Fresh guessed.

“Not really. I moved from foster home to foster home quite a bit growing up.” Ink shrugged and sat down, digging out his sketchbook and a pencil, beginning to scribble furiously.

“What’re ya doing?” Fresh asked curiously just as Ink finished and ripped the page out, folding it in half and placing it into the bottom of the bag.

“A note for later.” He smiled sweetly and sat back on the couch.

Fresh studied him for a moment before sitting back as well.

“Ya like ‘im a lot, don’t ya?” He asked after a brief spell of silence. Ink laughed.

“Yeah, I really do… I guess it’s kind of obvious.” He shrugged shyly.

“Nothin’ wrong with that.” Fresh laughed. “He likes ya too. But ya know that.”

“He’s told me that.” Ink laughed again, then he sighed. “I hope Geno’s okay.”

“He will be.” Fresh nodded to himself. “He always has been. But… I’m glad that guy told ‘im to call us. He probably wouldn’t have if he hadn’t.”

“He doesn’t want you guys to worry about him, does he?”

“Nope. He feels like since he’s the big brother, he’s gotta look out for us all the time. He doesn’t let us help ‘im. But I guess Error’s the same way.”

 “What am I?” Error asked from the bathroom’s doorway. The two looked to him and shook their heads.

“A cutie pie.” Ink said, hopping up. “Now let me in there so I can pack your bathroom stuff.”

“I can do that myself.” Error huffed, but Ink shook his head.

“Let me do this for you.” Ink smiled. Error sighed and moved out of the way. The artist moved into the room, grabbing only the essentials like his toothbrush and toothpaste, glasses (that Ink had to note Error hadn’t worn for him in a while… they’d have to change that), and a few other toiletries that Error might need. He tucked them neatly away into the bag.

“Oh! I forgot something!” Ink flitted across the apartment, going to Error’s desk and taking a book off of it, sliding it into the depths. “You need your book. I know you have to finish reading it by the end of the week.”

He zipped up the bag and handed it to his boyfriend, who had just finished putting on his shoes. Fresh stood up as well and the brothers prepared to leave.

“Do you want to stay here?” Error asked. Ink blinked up at him. “I know you like my place better than yours.”

“Uh…” It wasn’t exactly a lie. “Could I?”

Error smiled at him softly.

“Yeah.” He pulled out his keyring and slid his apartment key off, handing it over. “Just make sure to lock up.”

“I always lock the doors when I leave.” Ink sighed.

“I meant when you’re here by yourself.” Error gently shook his head. Ink blushed softly.

“O-Okay.” He promised. Error bent down and gave him a chaste kiss.

“We have to go now.” He said softly. “I love you, Ink.”

Ink smiled at him.

“I love you too, Error… Tell Geno I’m thinking about him.” He smiled softly, noticing out of the corner of his eye that Fresh was conveniently staring at anything besides the two of them.

“I will… Bye.” Error pulled away and moved to his brother. Ink smiled and waved to the two.

“Bye.” He whispered and closed the door once they had disappeared down the stairwell, locking it as he had been instructed.

 

* * *

 

Error and Fresh were silent for most of the trip, unsure of what to say to each other. What was there to say? That the situation sucked? They hoped Geno would be okay? That was all implied. Instead, they communicated in ways that only close brothers could: a gentle nudge, a look, a gesture. Fresh was apt at reading Error by now, too, and knew that he was too worried about their older brother to hold much of a conversation. They knew this day would come but had hoped it would have been postponed till Geno was a full doctor.

Fresh was the one to knock on the door, his peculiar melody alerting the resident.   

“Fresh!” Geno opened the door happily. “You took a while I-“

He stopped, blinking at Error.

“Error?” He asked, then grinned. “I see what happened. I’m glad you came.” He moved out of the way so the two could come in.

“Did you think I wouldn’t come?” Error huffed as he stepped inside the apartment. It wasn’t much, but it did have two bedrooms. Geno at least got paid enough for that.

“I… Didn’t think Fresh would tell you.” Geno admitted. “I didn’t want to bother you… you’re so close to graduating… I didn’t want anything to derail you.” He laughed awkwardly.

“Geno, this won’t derail me.” Error frowned, turning to face his brother fully. “You can always bother me if you need me.”

“Ya don’t exactly make yourself available.” Fresh noted. Error glared at him.

“Well, let’s change that. I’ll start… Communicating more.” He grumbled quietly.

“Do you mean that?” Geno asked hopefully. Error nodded.

“I guess I kind of… Miss you guys.” He admitted, crossing his arms. “But this isn’t about me. It’s about you.”

Geno smiled sadly.

“There’s not much to say… She passed. It was peaceful… As much as it could be.” He shrugged. He finally took them in completely.

“Why do you guys look like you’re going on a trip?”

“We’re stayin’ with ya for a bit.” Fresh smiled, finally setting his things down. Error followed his lead and slipped his backpack off, setting it next to his brother’s things.

“You don’t have to!” Geno cried quickly. “Error, what about school? Can you get there from here?”

“I’m on spring break.” Error shrugged and sat down on the couch. Fresh sat down on the opposite end, leaving only the middle open for Geno.

“I have to work tomorrow… You guys should go home. I don’t need to be watched.” Geno frowned.

“We’re not watching you.” Error stated. “We want to be with you.”

Geno sighed.

“There’s no changing your minds, is there?” He asked. The two shook their heads. “Okay… Should we watch a movie? I know it’s kind of late.”

“Whatever ya want.” Fresh answered.

“Fine…” Geno moved past the couch to a small closet and pulled out a large blanket. “I don’t have any snacks.”

“Already ate.” Error answered. Geno almost pouted.

“Okay, okay, I get it.” He sighed softly and took his place between them, spreading the blanket so that they were all equally covered. He picked up the remote and quickly found Underflix.

“What should we watch?” He asked. The two other skeletons just shrugged. “You guys aren’t being really helpful tonight.”

“Tonight’s about you. Pick what you want.” Error said. Fresh simply nodded in agreement.

Geno mumbled something akin to a curse, though even it couldn’t escape Fresh’s censoring and came out mutated. He began searching through the titles, quickly changing to the Children’s genre.

“What about Finding Ralsei? You used to love it, Fresh!” Geno said happily. This time, he didn’t wait for an answer before making his selection.

“You also loved it.” Error sighed.

“And ya pretended to hate it.” Fresh cajoled. Error frowned at him.

“Someone had to be the cool brother.” He grumbled.

“Ya right, and that was me.” Fresh laughed.

“You guys shut up! It’s starting.” Geno shushed, staring at the screen happily. Error and Fresh exchanged a look over his head before turning back to the screen.

Geno wasn’t sure exactly when it happened, but he knew that Error was the first.

At some point, Error’s head and started drifting to the side, as slow as a glacier, until it came to rest on Geno’s shoulder. Almost immediately, the dark skeleton was fast asleep.

To his credit, Fresh lasted a bit longer. Geno was only alerted to his youngest brother’s fatigue when his smile fell into an arch of neutrality. In the timespan of a few seconds, he had another skull perched on his opposite shoulder.

Hearing their soft sounds of slumber, Geno couldn’t help but feel tired himself. Who wouldn’t with someone’s deep, sleepy breaths echoing in each of their ears? His eyelids started to feel heavy, but he tried to blink himself awake. The last thing he really saw before sleeping was a blurry image of a green fish being reunited with his friends. He smiled, then fell victim to the soft, noncommittal release that only sleep could provide.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **HAPPY BIRTHDAY INK**
> 
>  
> 
> Too many April birthdays. 
> 
> Anyway, 
> 
>  
> 
> _Thanks for reading!_


	19. A New Key

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Error and Ink both say, "Roger."

Ink was unsure of what to do with himself for the remainder of the night. He couldn’t settle down, so he decided to strip the bed’s sheets and take them to the laundry room. He luckily still had his wallet in his pocket, or he would have forgotten the quarters he needed for the machine. When he was done putting them in, he set an alarm on his phone and headed back upstairs.

The rest of the night seemed pretty dull and uninteresting. He put fresh sheets on the bed, then went to his apartment to shower. For pajamas that night, he put on the T-shirt he had stolen from Error and a pair of shorts before heading down to the laundry room again to put the sheets in the dryer. Through the process, he learned that Error’s scent was a bit of natural odor mixed with the dryer sheets. Smelling them, he felt homesick even though he had seen him just an hour before.

He usually didn’t enjoy being in his own apartment because… It was lonely. Sad, even. He only had a bed as furniture, with random art supplies piled into various corners. Error’s place was nicer. Orderly, more things to sit on, and most importantly,

Error.

But when he got back to his boyfriend’s apartment, using his key to get in, it felt just as lonely and empty as his own place. He still needed to get the sheets out of the dryer, or else he’d get yelled at by the landlord again, so he sat and drew, his soul not really in it. His pencil… It just wasn’t the conduit he needed tonight. He sighed and closed his eyes. What could he do? He needed something.

Then, it hit him.

“Eureka!” He shouted, jumping off of Error’s stiff couch. He frowned at himself. He couldn’t just _do_ it. He had to have a plan.

So, he sat back down and began to sketch, using his shaky memory and social media stalking until he was able to find the references he needed. As if by fate, his alarm rang just as he had laid down all of the bare features.

“Break time.” He smiled happily and set his things down, bounding down the stairs and then back up them with an armful of linen. Once it had been folded (as best as he could) and stuffed away, he picked up his sketchbook again and went back to his place.

He was lucky to have accumulated such a collection of supplies, really. He had just the size canvas he needed lying on the floor where a TV stand would have fit perfectly. He quickly situated it on a different space of the floor, propped up against one of the walls. He briefly thought about how the apartment might feel different if it was decorated a bit more. He quickly dismissed the intrusion before he could get distracted and gathered his paints and brushes before sitting in front of the blank canvas.

And then, he began his work.

 

* * *

 

Error and Geno woke up in a heap on the couch, Error lying on top of the eldest skeleton. He was the first of the two to wake up, and once he started squirming, he woke his sibling as well.

“Error! Your elbow’s in my side!” Geno whined.

“I’m trying! Just give me a second!” Error growled, trying to untangle himself from his brother. When he couldn’t find an easy way for him to stand, he opted to just roll off the couch entirely and landed flat on his back, head narrowly missing the coffee table.

“What the funk, Error?! You could have just stood.” Geno huffed and sat up, placing his feet firmly on the ground as soon as Error was out of the way.

“I got off you like you wanted!” Error stood and gently stretched, trying to get the kinks a night on the couch drilled into his body out. “Where’s Fresh?”

“I’m here!” The youngest called from the kitchen.

That’s when the two noticed the smell of frying meat in the air.

“Bacon…” Geno mumbled as he checked his phone. “Why the heck is it six in the morning?”

“’Cause ya gotta go to work.” Fresh smiled from the entrance to the kitchen.

Geno blinked.

“Oh shoot! I almost forgot. I’ll go shower real quick-“

“First, breakfast.” Fresh commanded, gesturing for the two of them to make their way into the small dining room. “It’s ready.”

All three of them sat down at the tiny table, each of the three places set with a plate and a fork and knife.

“Really? A smiley face?” Error asked, tilting the plate so that Fresh could see it. There were two fried eggs for eyes and a few pieces of bacon for a smile.

“Gotta start the day right.” Fresh grinned and started eating his own.

“It’s cute.” Geno offered before starting to nibble on his own. Error sighed and simply ate his. It was a better breakfast than he usually had, at the very least.

They ate in silence, though it was an easy kind of quiet. The clacking of forks and scraping of knives conducted a symphony that the boys hadn’t heard since Geno left for college. Error felt a knot forming in the pit of his ribcage. He felt guilty, knowing he was mostly the reason they hadn’t spent a lot of time together in the past couple of years. He would make excuses not to go home for the holidays, or to only spend a couple of hours with them before leaving again. He was certainly the weakest link in this family.

“Thanks, Fresh!” Geno said happily and pulled away from the table. He moved to take his plate to the sink, but the younger brother stopped him.

“Jus’ leave it in the sink. I’ll get it.” Fresh smiled. “Ya gotta go get ready fo’ work.”

“If you’re sure…” Geno mumbled and set the plate delicately in the sink before going to the bathroom.

The two brothers that were left continued to eat, Error a bit grumpily so. It would take him a bit to brighten to his usual sunny self.

“Ya got any plans today?” Fresh asked, looking up from his meal.

“Uh…” Error began to think of any obligations he had for the day and silently cursed himself. He should have brought his suit so he could take it to the dry cleaners. It wasn’t like he could go and get it. Ink had his key.

He shook his head.

“Not really.”

“Ya wanna do somethin’ with me?” Fresh grinned.

“…Depends.” Error frowned suspiciously.

“Today I’m meetin’ with someone to take pictures for the ‘gram. I thought ya might wanna come.”

“Why the funk would I want to come?”

“I thought we could do somethin’ different today. I got enough pics.”

“Okay, so?” Error was getting a bit impatient, but at least Fresh had made him coffee so that he might wake up a bit faster.

“So… I was hopin’ to help ‘im loosen up. He’s…” Fresh had to think for a moment. “Closed off. I wanna help ‘im realize the world ain’t so bad.”

“So, he’s a friend? You want me to help you with a _friend_?” Honestly, Error was intrigued. Fresh hadn’t had a friend since… Well, before the accident. Probably since kindergarten.

“No.” Fresh stated, still with his signature smile. “I met ‘im doin’ somethin’ for work. I don’ really need any help with the pics, but it gives ‘im somethin’ to do and gets ‘im outside. I think he’s comfortable with me enough that he’ll be okay with me bringin’ ya along.”

Error, although he most definitely did NOT want to be a part of any of Fresh’s shenanigans, was curious enough that he seriously considered it.

“What would we be doing?” He asked.

“That’s the fun part.”

 

* * *

 

“What’s with you? You’ve been sighing and yawning all morning.” Chara huffed, setting down a box on the desk Ink was currently occupying.

“I’m tired!” Ink whined, then sighed again. “And I miss Error…”

“What? He didn’t give you a good morning blow job today?” Chara asked. Ink had to choke vomit back down his throat.

“Ha…ha…” Ink frowned. “He had to go to Geno’s last night. …He lost his first patient. Him and Fresh went to spend a few days with him.”

Chara smiled at him sadly.

“I’m sorry, Ink. It’s probably good for Geno. He’s kind of sensitive, though he tries not to show it.”

“Thanks, but I’m not really _sad_ Error went to spend time with his brother. I just miss him.” He paused. “Geno seems like a good guy.”

“He is.” Chara gently leaned against the desk next to Ink’s. “Wanna know a secret about him?”

“Yeah!” Ink’s eyes changed to stars.

“You know that scarf he always wears?”

“Yeah!”

“I asked him about it one time…” Chara looked to him slyly.

“Yeah?” Ink egged her on. She leaned in, like they were conspiring against a Nazi regime to hide their precious artworks.

“Error made it.” She whispered.

Ink jumped back, almost coming out of his chair.

“He made it?!”

“Yep!” Chara leaned back, smirking. “Apparently, when they were kids their mother had picked up knitting to distract herself. Error wanted to learn, so she taught him. He was a natural, but he only made that one scarf before he got bored of it. He gave it to Geno… And you want to know the best part?”

“There’s a better part?!”

Chara giggled.

“Error doesn’t remember any of it! He was too little!” She laughed again.

“Oh wow…” Ink said breathlessly.

“You should get Geno to tell you the story. He’s a much better storyteller than I am.” Chara sighed.

“I will!” Ink declared. But… it almost seemed like it was a secret, something Error shouldn’t know. He wasn’t sure if he could keep it to himself. It was adorable, but also something he should definitely tease Error about. But… he didn’t want to upset Error’s family before he had embedded himself like a barb they just couldn’t work loose. He hoped this would be one of those things he would forget until he had Geno to himself again.

“Why are you sleepy?” Chara asked, changing the subject.

“Oh!” Ink thought back to the night before. “I stayed up all night working on Error’s graduation present.”

“Shit, I gotta think of something too…” Chara sighed. “What’d you make him?”

“Hm… That’s a secret!” Ink chirped. “Which reminds me… I need to text Blue.”

“How did that remind you to text Blue?” She watched him typing into his phone.

“He needs to hide it… My apartment is too small. Error would be able to find it easily. It’s better if it stays somewhere else.” He looked up. “By the by… Are you two going out for smoothies soon?”

He watched as her demeaner changed. Unlike with Error, who he could sense a change in whether he moved or not, Chara’s body immediately softened, and she raised a hand to her hair, twirling a lock around her index finger.

“We’re going out tomorrow.” She said airily. Ink smiled softly at her. She seemed so girlish now, like a smitten teenager. Maybe the two of them would be like him and Error someday…

“I’ll try not to dump my smoothie on him.” She sighed. “He’s the perfect height, though.”

“Chara!”

 

* * *

 

The brothers’ first stop was the sporting goods store. Since Fresh had ruined the only bat any of them owned, a new one was first thing they picked out. Next, they had to get a ball because Fresh didn’t exactly pack his softball and his apartment was too far to go to just for that. He picked out a neon pink one. Just so he didn’t have two green ones. The final piece of equipment Error had insisted on, simply for the kid’s safety.

_“He’s never played before, has he?”_

_“Prolly not since like… grade school.”_

_“Then he needs it. I’ll… try to fix it.”_

_“It’s new. There’s nothin’ to fix.”_

_“This is hard to play with! It’s all stiff.”_

_“Ya don’t gotta do it fo’ ‘im. It’ll be fine.”_

Fresh’s pleas did nothing to dissuade his older brother. While they were waiting in line at the taco truck, Error stepped to the side and began beating the glove with the brand new metal baseball bat they had gotten, only because if they got a wooden one, Fresh might have broken it before they could really play.

Error tried on the glove again, ignoring the looks of the other patrons, and wiggled his fingers.

“Better.” He grumbled. He did his best with the resources he had.

“Ready?” Fresh asked, coming to him with his sack of tacos. It was more than he was used to getting, but it was for a good cause.

On the way to the park, Fresh filled his brother in on the person they were meeting, just so he was prepared.

“He’s real sensitive… To stimuli. Doesn’t like loud noises… Weird textures… touchin’.”

“Got it.”

“We only got about an hour ‘fore he gets overwhelmed an’ has to go.”

“Okay.”

“When he puts on his headphones, that’s when ya know he’s gotta leave.”

“Roger.”

“That’s ‘im.”

They were coming up to the bench where the skeleton sat. He looked up when he spotted Fresh’s bright neon clothes out of the corner of his eye. There was visible surprise in his face when he spotted Error walking with his employer, metal baseball bat over one shoulder, a leather mitt hanging off the end.

“Hey, Decans.” Fresh greeted. To Decans’ credit, he didn’t try to flee the scene immediately.

“H-hey…” Decans responded politely, eyes darting between Fresh and the strange skeleton with him.

“This is my brother, Error.” Fresh nodded towards said skeleton who simply shrugged.

Decans offered a nod of his own, waiting for further explanation, but when Fresh didn’t continue, he sat back, accepting the situation. Mostly.

“Got tacos.” Fresh offered Decans the bag first, sitting down in his usual spot while his companion shifted through the contents.

After Decans had gotten what he wanted, he held out the bag to Error, who was still standing. Error took his before passing the bag on. There wasn’t room on the bench (technically, he could have sat between them, but he and Decans would be touching and neither wanted that), and there weren’t any free benches nearby, so Error went to lean against the fountain.

As he ate, Error lost himself in thought. Being in the park, at a fountain, reminded him of his and Ink’s first and only real date. With a sudden pang, he was hit with longing for his colorful boyfriend. He felt it stirring where intestines would have sat had he been a normal monster, his gut twisting and churning as he tried to force food down. He wouldn’t admit it to anyone, but he missed the little guy even though it had only been one night. Almost every day since they met, he had at least seen him in the morning, starting his day on the right foot. He frowned to himself. He could have texted Ink that morning. He decided to do it now.

He pulled out his phone and pulled up their ongoing message, thumb hovering over the keys. He wanted to say a lot, but he only had a limited number of words in him. He could tease him over text, but that didn’t convey how much he missed him. He could say he missed him, but “miss” didn’t convey the extent to which Error wished for him. It was a concentrated yearning, sitting just at the base of his spine and drilling holes down into the bone. But it wasn’t just yearning he felt. No, he felt…

_Homesick._

Homesick for his lover’s touch and presence. He wanted to occupy the same space as Ink, even if just for a brief second. To take him in. To refill his tank so that his engine could run once more.

But Error couldn’t think of a way to express all of that. So, he did his best.

_Love you, dork._

He sighed gently, staring at his phone’s wallpaper, Ink with his tongue poking out, concentrating on his drawing. The picture Cross had sneaked for him. A message popped up, starling him out of reverie.

_I don’t like that nickname. Try again._

Error sighed, trying not to smile. He could feel the uncomfortable clench in his stomach beginning to ease.

_Nerd?_

_Try again._

_Rose of my life?_

_Too cheesy. Thank you, next._

_Ass?_

_Only in bed, sweetie._

_Rainbow ass?_

_Again, only in bed. You’ve already said it._

_Rose of my life?_

_No! I meant in person._

Error stopped to think. When had he called Ink a nickname? He scowled at the phone, replaying every scene he could remember with Ink. That’s when it hit him.

_Love you, Inky._

_Love you too, rose of my life._

Error groaned. He probably wasn’t getting out of that one anytime soon.

While Error was silently squabbling with his lover, Decans and Fresh sat in their usual silence, eating while enjoying the pleasant weather and the plethora of interesting characters passing by. It wasn’t until Decans was finished and crushing the wrapper to his taco in his fist that he decided to ask:

“Why… does he have a baseball bat?”

Fresh turned slightly and smiled at him.

“We’re gonna play baseball today.” He explained calmly. Decans immediately went into a panic.

“I-I don’t th-think I can stay, Fresh. I gotta go-“ He was standing when Fresh stopped him using only his words.

“Ya already got paid.”

Decans froze where he was, turning to look at Fresh. It was true, he had been paid. The evidence was curled in his palm. He paused, trying to collect himself. He wasn’t about to run away… Not when Fresh’s end of the deal had already been delivered.

“O-okay… Why baseball?” He continued.

“Error’s good at it.” Fresh shrugged. “He went to college because of it.”

“And this is your brother with… haphephobia?” Decans asked again, unusually chatty. But for once, he had a reason to speak. Fresh nodded.

“Yep. I think it helped ‘im with it, somehow. He won’t tell ya, but I think he misses it.” Fresh tossed his empty wrapper into the bag.

“B-but… Why me? Why now?” Decans was almost bone-tired just from _thinking_ about playing.

“Why not ya and why not now?” Fresh asked, his expression not changing.

“You guys done?” Error asked as he approached, seeing Decans standing and assuming they were ready.

“Yep!” Fresh hopped up, taking Error’s trash as well and went to throw it away, leaving the two alone.

There was an awkward silence before Decans’ curiosity got the best of him.

“Wh-what position did you play?” He asked, trying not to look too interested.

“Pitcher.” Error briefly explained. Decans studied him, a million thoughts flying through his mind.

“How?”

“How what?” Error frowned. Decans mirrored his expression, his frustration coming through.

“How…?” Decans tried again but couldn’t quite get there. Error watched him, unsure of what to do.

“Ya bros ready?” Fresh asked as he came back to the two. He looked from Decans to Error, wondering what exactly Error did to steam Decans up. He elected to ignore it with the hopes that the situation would diffuse. Pointing it out would probably only upset Decans more.

“Yeah.” Error said quickly. “Decans, what do you want to do first?”

“What do I want to do?” Decans asked, pointing at his own chest. Error nodded. “I-I don’t know…”

“Do you want to throw the ball? Or hit the ball?” Error tried again, softening his tone a bit.

“I don’t want to do either… They both seem… hard.” Decans furrowed his brow.

“Don’t worry, if ya wanna hit the ball, Error’ll make it easy for ya.” Fresh promised. Decans simply gave him a dubious look. “Okay, watch us first.”

Decans frowned and followed them out onto the grass, watching from what he assumed was a safe distance.

The brothers faced off once again. Fresh gently swung the bat back and forth, getting a feel for the equipment. Error began to run through the stretches that had been drilled into his very marrow after all the years he had spent on the field. Decans watched in quiet wonder as the brothers fluidly clicked into their starting positions, Fresh with his bat held high and Error holding the ball out.

“Eye on the ball.” Error commanded, beginning to gently toss the pink sphere up and down. “Eye…on…the…ball!”

He suddenly clenched his fingers around the ball and snapped his arm back before thrusting it forward and releasing.

Decans watched the spectacle with wide eyes. He was immediately taken in with the gentle flow of Error’s body: how his left leg came up just before his right arm went back. How his foot came back down with a quiet stomp and his arm released the ball. How his face shifted from concentration to a soft smile. It was as if he was performing a dance rather than playing a sport. And Decans was enamored.

He followed the ball with his entire head as it soared through the air and expertly landed just in front of Fresh’s bat as he swung, sending it flying. His focus returned once again to Error, who was yelling something over his shoulder as he ran after the ball, face twisted into the crazed grin of someone who took the sport a bit too seriously.

This time, Error didn’t have to dive in order to catch the ball. He did jump upwards, his hand meeting the leather midair. He fell back to earth like a satisfied, if somewhat competitive, angel.

“You didn’t hit it as far this time, Fresh!” He called as he walked back, panting silently.

“It wasn’t ya best throw.” Fresh shrugged before turning back to Decans. “So, whatta ya wanna do?”

Decans tore his eyes away from Error and smiled ever so slightly.

“I want to pitch.” He said quietly.

“Good choice.” Fresh nodded. “Ya gonna need this.” He tossed Decans the glove Error had tried so hard to break in.

“I’ll take that.” Error said, holding his hand out for the glove. Decans confusedly placed it in his hand. Error, noting Decans’s obvious confusion, continued,

“I’ll go running after the balls. So you can just focus on the game.”

 

* * *

 

On schedule, once an hour had passed, Decans had to break away. He gingerly placed his headphones on but smiled at his two companions.

“Thanks.” Was all he said before turning and hurrying from the park, which had a slightly more pleasant undertone for him now.

The two brothers watched him go. Error, who was always a bit of a try hard when it came to anything, had grass stains up and down his clothing. The thighs of his jeans were the worst, painted with the bright green of grass that had been scarified to the baseball gods.

“I think he likes ya.” Fresh said as they made their way out of the park.

“Don’t know why.” Error shrugged. He was honestly surprised Ink liked him. “He’s… interesting.”

“Ya.”  Fresh nodded in agreement. “He’s a good kid.”

“…Can I ask?” Error asked timidly.

“…I don’t think the answer matters.” Fresh grinned and shrugged. Error smiled gently and gave a shrug in agreement.

“You’re right.” He stopped as they got to the train station. “…I’m going to head somewhere for a bit. I’ll meet you back at Geno’s.”

Fresh’s glasses displayed question marks before it hit him what Error was leaving to do, then they lit up with exclamation points.

“Alright. I’ll see ya there.”

 

* * *

 

Ink’s mood had improved considerably after receiving Error’s text. He still wasn’t at one hundred percent, but he felt better. Even though he felt the need to tease Error, it was really quite sweet.  

“Alright. Everything good over there?” Chara called to him from the other side of the gallery.

“Yep! Everything’s taken care of!” Ink responded, turning off the lights. Blue was going to meet him at his apartment so that he could hand the painting off, so he was in a bit of a hurry to get home. After he ran one little errand on the way to the train station.

“Good. Let’s head out.” Chara picked up her things where she had dumped them onto the gallery’s floor so she wouldn’t have to go back downstairs.

“I want to lock up today!” Ink quickly bounced to the front door, beating Chara.

“You don’t have to race me, I would’ve let you do it anyway.” She huffed, walking out with Ink quickly behind her.

“Yeah, but what if you decided not to?” He asked and she shrugged in response. It would be like her to say she would let him and then do it herself. He pulled out his keyring and quickly found the right key before sliding it into the lock and twisting.

“There!” He announced, proud of himself for remembering which key it was.

“Congratulations!” Chara cried with fake enthusiasm. “Your prize is over there.” She pointed her thumb over her shoulder.

“Prize?” Ink asked, blinking, before moving to peek around his boss.

Error was once again waiting for him, this time looking worse than he usually did. Not only was he dressed in one of the outfits Ink had packed for him, he was covered in grass stains.

Forgetting to even say farewell to his boss, Ink quickly ran towards him.

“Error!” He yelled happily, throwing his arms around the taller skeleton.

“Nice to see you too.” Error laughed softly and caught him before Ink pulled them both down. He looked up and waved to Chara, who returned the gesture with a smirk before walking away. She was going to give them their time together. Ink pulled back enough so that he could look up at his boyfriend.

“Care to explain why there’s a bunch of stains all over one of your only good pairs of jeans?” He asked, scowling.

“Uh… Baseball?” Error looked down at himself, not having realized how bad it truly was. Ink sighed, but smiled all the same. Now that it had been brought to his attention, the signs of a romp outdoors were clear to Ink. Not only the grass stains, but the smell of outside mixed with the sour-sweet smell of Error’s sweat. Ink wanted to curl himself into the comforting aroma, even if it wasn’t the most pleasant thing he had smelled all day.

“You came to pick me up.” Ink stated.

“I came to pick you up.” Error confirmed.

Ink smiled and gently took Error’s hand, beginning to lead him down the sidewalk towards the train station.

“Are you coming home?” Ink asked tentatively. On one hand, he would love to have Error back. On the other, he had a heist to pull off.

“No… I’ll get on another train. I think Fresh is cooking or something…” Error sighed.

“He cooks?” Ink asked, genuinely surprised.

“Yeah… It’s not the best, but it’s not bad. He’s got enough time to.” Error shrugged.

“Wait!” Ink cried, pulling them to a stop.

“What? Forget something?” Error asked, puzzled.

“Nope! The exact opposite!” Ink smiled and tugged him down a side street.

“Where are we going…?” Error asked, making sure to note the street signs as Ink turned them down another street.

“You’ll see.” Ink smiled to himself. Error grumbled something but let his lover continue with his little surprise.

With a few small pauses for Ink to think, they came across a dry cleaner.

“Here!” Ink declared before leading him inside. Error, still confused, followed along without question, though he had many.

Ink handed over a small slip of paper he produced from his coat pocket to the clerk and the woman disappeared before bringing back Error’s suit, freshly cleaned and delicately hung and draped with a protective plastic sheet. Error blinked, taking the suit as Ink paid.

“You remembered.” Error said softly after they had exited the shop, hand in hand once again.

“Yep!” Ink smiled triumphantly. “I sure did.”

Error smiled softly at him but chose not to say anything. Ink frowned at him.

“What? Are you surprised?” The artist huffed.

“Yeah.” Error admitted.

“I guess I can’t blame you.” Ink laughed quietly. “But… when it comes to you, I try really hard.”

“You try really hard?”

“Yeah… I know it’s not something willpower can fix but… I like to think that if I try really hard, I can remember stuff about you.” Ink grinned up at him.

Error stopped, staring into Ink’s eyes, before changing their trajectory and forcefully pulling his lover down an alley.

“Error?!” Ink cried just before he was roughly pushed against a brick wall, Error’s hot and needy mouth pressing against his own.

The two melted into each other, completely forgetting that they were only a few feet away from a dumpster. Thankfully, the only onlookers they had to worry about were a few dumpster-diving rats and one stray cat who began to yowl. They broke apart only as long as their desire allowed before kissing again. All of the unspoken feelings they had built up over their time apart were poured wordlessly into each other, sweetly running down their throats like fresh honey and settling into the crevices of their souls.

Finally, they pulled away from each other long enough to stare into one another’s eyes. Error gave Ink a few more chaste kisses before gently resting his forehead against the smaller’s, not wanting their contact to completely cease.

“Why?” Ink whispered.

“Why what?”

“You know what I mean.”

“…You’ll make fun of me.”

“I won’t make fun of you… much.” Ink promised. Error pulled away so he could look down properly at Ink. He searched his eyes before sighing and continuing.

“I miss you.” He mumbled. Ink smiled at him.

“I miss you too.” He echoed.

“I love you.” Error added.

“I love you too.” Ink laughed slightly, smiling at his boyfriend’s cuteness.

“I don’t want to be apart from you.” Error looked down at him, seriousness dripping in his voice.

“I don’t either…” Ink titled his head slightly, unsure of where Error was headed with this. “We have to be sometimes, though.”

“I know…” Error sighed. “I’m not the best with words but… I guess what I’m trying to say is…” His brows furrowed.

Ink nodded, trying to wait patiently, though his soul was racing.

“I want you to live with me.” Error finally spat out, forcing himself to not look away from his beloved.

Ink’s eyes widened.

“I-I….” Error began to stammer. “Y-you don’t have to. I…I just wanted to be honest with you.”

“Error…” Ink sighed, smiling sadly. “We can’t.”

“I know, it’s too soon…” Error finally looked away, his cheeks hot with embarrassment and shame.

“It is…” Ink nodded in solemn agreement. “According to my plans we would need at least six months’ worth of savings to be able to afford a nice apartment. All the websites say to have a lot in savings when you move… Plus, we would have to wait out our leases, unless we broke them, but we’d need to save up for that too, and by the time we saved up for both, our leases would be over anyway… And not only that, we have to wait till a new apartment is available and in this city who knows when that’ll be-“

“Wait.” Error cutoff his boyfriend’s ramble.

“Yeah?” Ink asked, blinking.

“You’ve… planned us moving in together?” Error asked, frowning.

“Yeah!” Ink let out a sputtering laugh. “I don’t like being away from you either… But I did plan to be the one to ask you, when I had saved enough… You need to let me do something first, ya know?” He pouted.

“Okay, fine, you can do the next big step.” Error laughed in relief. “We don’t have to get another apartment to live together.”

Ink’s eyes changed to exclamation points.

“I…” Ink pulled out his keyring, finding the most precious piece of metal on it. “I can move some stuff while you’re gone…” He suggested shyly.

“And make me another key.” Error smiled, gently kissing Ink’s forehead. “We should probably go to the train station now.”

“Hm… Probably.” Ink agreed. Error pulled away from him and took his hand once more, leading them out of the alley.

Ink looked around, frowning.

“I don’t remember where we are.” His frowned deepened. “Error! You kissed the directions out of me!”

Error just laughed.

“I remember where we’re going. Don’t worry about it.”

“Error?”

“Yeah?”

“Can we get a cat?”

“What? No.”

“Why not?!”

“We don’t have the space for one.”

Ink thought about it for a moment.

“You’re right…” He grinned at Error slyly. “ _We_ certainly don’t have the space.”

“ _We_ also probably shouldn’t tell anyone we’re moving in together.”

“… You know, you’re right. Chara did kind of freak out when I talked about it.”

“You talked to Chara about it?”

“Yeah! I tell her a lot.”

“Well… Don’t tell her this.”

“Roger.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First things first: 
> 
> Happy _early_ birthday, Fresh! 
> 
> It's time again for a fun fact: 
> 
> Decans is the youngest character introduced thus far, coming in at approximately 18 years old. (I don't have set ages for anyone, just fyi.) 
> 
> And the Gasters are the oldest, but I think you guys figured that one. 
> 
> ~~Sorry for the all the baseball stuff. I think I'm just excited because the season opened recently and that means we're closer to summer!~~


	20. Just a Little Taste

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chara bullies Blue and Nightmare makes a move.

Error was the first to wake up the next morning. The birds were singing, the sunlight was filtering through the bedroom window, and he was lying next to one of the most important people to him.

He had ended up sharing a bed with Geno, since none of them wanted to sleep on the couch again. Fresh had offered to share the spare bed with Error, but the elder refused on the basis that Fresh was prone to night terrors, and he wasn’t going to get pushed out of a bed again.

Error rubbed his eyes sleepily and took his phone off the bedside table, turning the screen on and finding that he had a text from Ink. He smiled to himself, though there was no telling what it really was. Maybe it was something cute about him moving his things into _their_ apartment. It was still odd for Error to think about, since he had never lived with a lover, and Ink would still technically have his apartment. But there wouldn’t be any back and forth or scurrying down the hall for something.

Error had fallen asleep the night before thinking about the little things that living with a partner meant. There would be wait times for the shower, someone else’s clothes hanging in his closet, shoes taken off messily at the end of a long day. There would be different bottles of toiletries loitering in the bathroom, a mate for his toothbrush in its holder next to the sink. It would mean waking up next to the only person he had ever truly, really, loved besides his family. It would mean more nights spent cooking together or watching Undernovela. It would mean never spending an unnecessary moment away from Ink.

He opened the message.

_Good morning!_

Attached was a picture of an obviously naked Ink (thank the stars it was only from the waist up), draped in one of his jackets.

Error quickly looked over his shoulder at his older brother, who was thankfully still asleep. He sighed gently and turned back to his phone, unsure of just exactly how to respond. It was… nice, but startling. So, instead of responding exactly to the text, he took a picture of himself, half of his face pressed into the pillow, and sent it back with,

_Good morning._

After sending the message, he checked the time. It was mid-morning still, so he didn’t feel too bad for sleeping through his lover’s text. When Ink didn’t immediately reply, he decided to get up. He looked over at Geno, once more, to make sure he was still sleeping before he left the room.

“Why are you the first one up again?” Error asked, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

“I got a meetin’ with a potential sponsor.” Fresh smiled at him from the couch. The news was playing on the TV, but it was so long into the morning that the actual news had ceased and now two hosts were running themselves through an obstacle course meant for dogs.

“Who?” Error, trying to sound like he didn’t care. He was a bit disappointed that Fresh hadn’t made them breakfast again. He sat down next to his brother and watched the TV lazily.

“Some artisan soda company.” Fresh shrugged.

“Isn’t soda bad for kids?”

“Technically, it’s bad fo’ everyone.” Fresh reminded him. “But they donate some o’ their proceeds to the local children’s hospital.”

“How nice.” Error grumbled. He felt his phone vibrate.

_Are you coming home tonight?_ Ink asked.

_No, Geno’s off today. But tomorrow I will._

_Guess this picture’s going to have to keep me company till then._ Ink had inserted a suggestive smiley face to the end. Error had to hold back a cough.

_Gross. Why are you always like this?_

_I meant that I’m gonna fall asleep next to it. You’re the pervert!_

Error groaned. At this point, he knew Ink was just messing with him. Fresh looked over at him, but shrugged, figuring out more or less the truth. The taller looked at his own phone.

“Welp, I gotta get goin’.” He hopped up and went to the door, grabbing his skateboard.

“See ya.” Error mumbled.

“I’ll see ya rad bros later.” Fresh waved before leaving.

“Bros?” Error frowned and looked over his shoulder to where Geno was standing in the doorway, sluggishly waving Fresh goodbye. “Ah. Good morning.”

“Good morning.” Geno mumbled back, heading towards the kitchen. “Want breakfast?”

“Yeah.” Error slowly stood, following the eldest just like he had done many times in his youth.

Luckily, Fresh had already put on a pot of coffee for them, even though he didn’t drink the stuff himself. Geno went to one of the cupboards and pulled out two boxes of toaster pastries. He held out the box of chocolate flavored ones to Error while he got himself a cherry flavored one.

“And you get onto _me_ about eating like a kid.” Error smirked as he pulled out a package.

“They’re easy on the go.” Geno shrugged.

“You could always use a granola bar or sports bar.” Error suggested. Geno looked at him grumpily.

“I don’t want those.” He huffed and pulled himself out a coffee mug. Error could fend for himself is he was going to be an ass.

Error grumbled as he got his own mug. His eyes fell on the three-quarters empty bakery box that Geno had brought home after his shift.

“He really likes you, huh?” Error asked, looking at the lone cupcake still inside.

“Yeah… He does.” Geno frowned to himself.

When he had gotten to hospital the day before, he had gone to find Reaper to thank him for his suggestion to talk to his brothers. It really had made him feel better and less lonely at home. But when he got to the morgue, the assistant told him that Reaper had traded shifts with another pathologist, but she’d tell him that he stopped by.

Geno had gone on with his day. It had been near the end of his shift when one of the nurses approached him and told him Reaper had left something for him at the nurses’ station. Curious, he went to the station only to find a box from a specialty bakery waiting for him. There was a sticky note on top with a small note that read:

_They only sell them in boxes of four. -R_

When he inspected the contents, there were four cupcakes: chocolate, strawberry, vanilla, and something that smelled like cinnamon. Part of him wondered if Reaper had only brought them because he had heard Geno was looking for him, but another part told him that hadn’t been it. It wouldn’t have surprised him if the mortuary assistant had texted Reaper and passed on Geno’s message. Then, knowing that information, Reaper would have gone to some kind of kitschy bakery, got the most basic of flavors, then came back and simply delivered them. On his day off. Because he knew it would make Geno feel better. The evidence was that Geno hadn’t see even a hint of the doctor.  

Thinking about it now, Geno couldn’t help but smile. The only flavor left was the vanilla one.

“Do you want to take it home to Ink?” Geno asked, looking back to Error who seemed startled.

“H-How’d you know?” Error asked, eyes wide. He had told Ink to keep it a secret, and _he_ hadn’t told anyone, so how did Geno know?!

“Uh…” Geno squinted at him. “Everyone likes cupcakes?”

Error visibly relaxed.

“Yeah, I’ll take it to him.” He looked at the box. It was the perfect flavor, too. For someone so colorful, Ink liked the blandest of flavors.

Geno’s eye lingered on Error a bit longer before he filled his mug and went to the living room, sitting on the couch and propping his feet on the coffee table.

“You’re a heathen in your own house.” Error sighed as he came into the room, his own mug filled.

“Because it’s my house.” Geno reminded as he bit into one of his pastries.

“Right.” Error sat down next to him, mimicking his brother. Geno frowned at him.

“I can do what I want in _my_ house. Get your feet off.” He gently commanded.

“What kind of example are you setting for your little brother if you do it but don’t let me?” Error grinned.

“…” Geno’s frown deepened, and he squinted, watching Error squirm a bit. “You can if you tell me.”

“Tell you what?” Error grumbled, avoiding eye contact.

“Tell me what got you so worked up back there. I just asked if you wanted to give the cupcake to Ink…” Geno tilted his head, putting on his investigative expression. “And you freaked out. You’re hiding something.”

“I’m not hiding anything.” Error looked away and shoved half of his pastry into his mouth so he couldn’t talk.

Geno leaned in closer.

“You are. You’re not a good liar, Error. You never have been.” He continued to lean, watching Error chew frantically, though by now the food would have turned to mush.

“What are you hiding, Error? It has something to do with Ink. Did you break up?”

Error finally swallowed.

“NO!” He cried.

“Huh. So, what is it?” Geno moved in, swiping Error’s food before he could put more in his mouth. “What are you hiding? Are you pregnant?”

“Geno! You’re the doctor here. You know damn well I can’t get pregnant!”

“Is Ink pregnant?”

“He also can’t get pregnant!”

“Are you planning to run away with him? You know I’d hate you forever if you didn’t invite me to your wedding.”

“No! Damn it, Geno! Stop!”

“Do you have a secret sex dungeon? I heard what he implied at the picnic. I never took you as someone who’d be into that.”

“No! For fuck’s sake Geno-“

“Do you record yourselves on camera and sell your sex tapes online?”

“Stars! Geno! No! We’re just moving in together!”

Geno smirked, satisfied, and sat back.

“Fuck.” Error grumbled. He forgot just how good Geno was when it came to things like this.

“You’re moving in together?” Geno asked, going back to his food and throwing Error’s at him.

“You sound really… Calm about that.” Error frowned.

“ _Weren’t_ you practically living together? He lives next door.” Geno shrugged. “And you guys have sex, so you already sleep in each other’s beds… It’s not _that_ hard to figure out.”

“Not for you…” Error mumbled. “You’re not… Mad?”

“Why would I be mad?” Geno looked over at him. “I trust your decisions, Error.”

Error smiled slightly.

“And if you break up, he can just go to his own apartment like the scum he is for hurting you.”

“There’s the Geno I know.”

 

* * *

 

Dream had stayed in bed for as long as his body would allow that morning. It was spring break, and he didn’t have to do anything. He had a few assignments, but nothing too hard. Then again, school wasn’t really all that hard for him. Or Nightmare. They had both gotten scholarships and had been top of their class in high school. The only difference was Dream getting the valedictorian spot by only a 0.01 difference in their GPA’s.

Nightmare…

Dream sighed softly. He missed his brother. He had stopped coming over recently, though he had his own key to get in. Maybe he came when Dream was on campus. He knew how much Nightmare loved Sunshine. Or cats. He thought about inviting his brother over, but assumed he was busy with something else. He always was when Dream wanted to see him.

Nightmare never really had any friends growing up. It wasn’t like he was rude and bitter back then. He had just been quiet. And a bit shy, but he was kind. Yet, people always kept him at a distance. Dream was the one making friends and bringing them to Nightmare, but they never stayed. At some point, Nightmare got tired of trying and gave up on friends, happy to be alone. At least, Dream assumed he had.

He finally got out of bed and went to the bathroom, before feeding Sunshine and flopping down on the couch. The apartment was… lonely, without anyone here. Dream didn’t like to be alone all the time. At least with Ink there was always someone around, even if he was holed up in the spare bedroom he called his studio.

Dream looked to his phone. He couldn’t stay alone another day…

His phone dinged.

_Good morning._

Dream smiled, feeling warmth spread through his bones and tickling him like a soft feather. He started to type back, but before he could send it, a picture appeared in the chat. It was of a deformed creature that was a character in a movie where a whimsum had to destroy a ring of ultimate power. Scrolling across the top of the picture were the words, “Good Morning” and on the bottom was, “My Precious.”

Dream laughed out loud.

_Good morning._ He texted back, smiling to himself. As if sensing his mood, the cat meowed lazily and hopped up onto the back of the couch and then moved down onto him, curling herself between Dream’s neck and shoulder. It was as if she wanted to bask in the warmth her charge was radiating.

Dream cooed at her, scratching under her chin.

“You know, you’re right, Sunshine! I _should_ invite Cross over!” He smiled and quickly started typing before freezing. Did he really want to invite Cross over?

He had to think about it.

It would be the first time his boyfriend would come in…

He sat up, to Sunshine’s great discomfort, and looked around. Everything was clean. But… what if Cross saw it as an invitation… for _that?_ Dream frowned. That was a level of intimacy he wasn’t ready for. But he thought of Cross and his quiet timidity when it came to him. He was always so considerate and hadn’t wanted to even say his feelings in case it made Dream uncomfortable. He smiled.

  _I’m lonely, do you want to-_

Dream stopped, shook his head, and erased that half-sentence. It sounded like the start of a porn film.

_Do you want to hang out at my place today?_

He sent that one. It sounded much more casual than the first. He stretched and hopped up, going to the small kitchen and looking through his fridge to make sure he had at least some groceries that he and Cross could use… If Cross wanted to come over, that is. He decided he had enough and closed the door, going to his cabinets and checking for any snack foods. He had some pretzels and some pre-packed cookies. It was a good enough spread for just wanting to hang out together. He heard his phone and went back to the living room.

_Yeah. What time?_

Dream smiled.

_Give me about an hour and you can come any time after that._

That would give him enough time to make sure everything, including himself, was presentable.

_See you in an hour._

* * *

 

“Alright, Ink, I’m headed out!” Chara poked her head into their little office from the stairway.

“Where are you going?” Ink perked up from his spot in front of the microwave. He had found an only _slightly_ freezer burned pre-packed meal in Error’s fridge. It was good enough for him.

“Seriously? I told you this morning. You’ve known since last week.” Chara sighed.

“Sorry?” Ink laughed. “I only have room in my brain for-“

“Yeah yeah.” She shushed him. “I’m going out with Blue for a smoothie for lunch. Remember now?”

“Oh yeah!” Ink chirped. He probably should have texted his friend good luck this morning. He was going to need it. “Have a good time!”

Chara rolled her eyes.

“Just keep the place together while I’m gone. I’ll be back in like an hour.”

Ink saluted her before she turned and walked back up the steps.

Chara didn’t get nervous.

Not _usually._

There was always a cool, calm confidence around her, as if nothing truly mattered. But… a tiny skeleton with azure eyes could get her worked up. At first, she had equated it to the fact that he small, and cute, and easily bullied. While all of those feelings were still present, there was something else that she wasn’t used to:

She didn’t want to fuck this up.

She left the art gallery, locking the door on her way out, and headed up the street. They were going to meet at the smoothie place: some health food store that had a nice patio for them to hang out on. It turned out to be the perfect day for a patio date: the air was warm, and the breeze was just crisp enough to keep you from sweating. Just breathing left the sweet taste of the promise of summer on her tongue.

Chara walked briskly up the street, her small-heeled Mary Janes barely keeping her rooted to the ground. She could see the little shop in the distance, and even from where she was walking, she could make out the shape and size of her date waiting for her outside.

“He’s early…” She whispered hysterically, trying not to let herself stop and truly bask in the moment. She did, however, slow down so she could catch her breath. Ink had told her he was a personal trainer, and she really didn’t want to make him think she didn’t workout.

She _didn’t_ workout, but that wasn’t the point.

“Blue!” She called, mustering a smile and pushing down the rising butterflies in her stomach.

The skeleton turned around to face her, his smile already fixed on his face.

“Chara!” He returned happily, giving her a small wave as she closed the distance between them.

“Have you been waiting long?” She asked, still trying to smile like a normal human being.

“Just got here.” Blue tucked his hands into the pockets of his jacket. They seemed at a bit of a loss of what to say. They hadn’t texted much since Blue’s initial invite. Neither of them was really _good_ at approaching potential romantic partners. Chara was better at finding someone for the night and Blue… He was better at helping his friends with matters of romance.

“Should we go in?” Chara offered, hoping that the awkwardness wouldn’t last too long.

“Yeah.” Blue smiled and started towards the door. Chara walked with him, but before she could reach for the door handle, he quickly bounded ahead of her, opening the door for her.

“Thanks.” She smiled, a bit embarrassed at the chivalrous gesture, but liked it all the same.

“No need to thank me.” Blue brushed it off.

They stood side-by-side in front of the counter, gazing up at the menu. Chara wasn’t much of a smoothie drinker… not usually, anyway. She gently tapped her lips as she continued to scan the menu. There was a smoothie named piña colada, which she did enjoy when it wasn’t a smoothie, so she decided on that.

“You ready?” She asked, smiling down at her companion, who was already looking at her.

“Yep!” Blue chirped, leading them to the counter. After they ordered, he moved to take out his wallet but Chara was too fast for him and handed her card to the cashier.

“I was gonna pay.” Blue smiled at her. She shrugged.

“You had to come all the way out here because of my work. It’s the least I could do.” She returned the smile and they moved to the side to wait for their drinks. “Speaking of work, Ink told me you’re a personal trainer?”

“Yeah!” Blue’s grin widened. “I love it, really. Helping and watching people improve themselves is just so rewarding. Everyone has it in them, but sometimes they need someone cheering them on.”

“Sounds great.” She grinned, Blue’s being infectious. Personally, she would rather help people be their worst selves. Or maybe “baddest selves” was a better term for it.

Their order was called and before she could even twitch a muscle, Blue had rushed to the counter and grabbed the Styrofoam cups and grabbed two straws on his way back.

“Where should we sit?” He asked, glancing around the small seating area in the main room.

“I thought we could go out on the patio. It’s really nice out today.” Chara suggested and before he could answer, she started walking to the door leading outside, opening the door for him. He smiled and hurried through, choosing a small table next to the sidewalk. He placed Chara’s smoothie across from himself before sitting down.

Chara slid into her chair, feeling their knees knock together gently from the short length of the table. Her first instinct was to move her knees away but spotting the hint of blue gracing her date’s cheekbones, she held her position. Seeing him flustered made her gut twist with something unrecognizable.

“U-uh so…” Blue looked anywhere but at her, giving her confidence. Making someone uncomfortable gave her power. “D-do you like working at the art gallery?”

“It’s my parents’ business.” Chara thrust her straw through the lid and took a sip. “I don’t really have a choice.”

“But…” Blue tilted his head. “Do you like it?”

“Hmm…” Chara had tried not to think about it before. “I don’t really know. I’m going to inherit it someday. It’s fine, I guess.”

“That doesn’t sound really convincing.” Blue frowned slightly. She shifted her legs as if repositioning them, watching him squirm. “Wh-what would you do if you could do anything?”

“Anything?” Chara asking, gently placing her elbow on the table and cradling her cheek in her hand.

“Yeah! Anything! Astronaut, dinosaur… Dream big!” He laughed softly and Chara could have sworn she would fall in love with him just for that laugh.

“I’d be a chef.” She answered automatically.

“A chef?! So, you cook?” His eyes turned into stars.

“Woah, woah, woah, your eyes just did the Ink thing!” She cried, feeling heat spread through her own cheeks.

Blue laughed again, sending her into sensory overload.

“Yeah! All of our friend group’s eyes do it. Ink does, Dream does, and I do! It happens when we’re excited.”

Chara frowned slightly. This little skeleton was going to kill her before the day was over if he got any cuter. She needed those eyes to go back into their usual, circular shape. She didn’t get the chance to wait it out before Blue continued.

“So, you cook?” He prodded again.

“Y-yeah… I like it.” She wasn’t sure what to say. She couldn’t focus on anything but him.

“I cook sometimes, too!” Blue laughed again. “But only tacos. You’ll have to try them sometime.”

“Y-yeah…” She said, a bit dreamily. “That would be nice.”

Blue smiled and turned back to his smoothie, eyes sliding back to their original appearance. Chara sighed quietly in relief. He smiled happily.

“This tastes really good.” He sighed.

“Oh? What does it taste like?” She perked up, finally beginning to recover.

“Strawberry, kind of guava… Do you just want to try it?” He asked, stretching his cup out to her.

And in that moment, she made a split-second decision to give herself more control of the situation.

She stood and leaned across the table. When Blue opened his mouth to ask what the matter was, she moved in, quickly pressing her lips to his mouth and darting her tongue in. Maintaining eye contact, she slid her tongue across his for a brief moment, watching his eyes turn back into stars. She pulled back, licking her lips and sat back down.

“Tastes good.” She mumbled, flushing as she watched his face turn into a blueberry, both of them watching each other awkwardly.

Finally, Blue found his voice and laughed.

“Mweh heh heh… That was… unexpected…” He mustered, taking another sip.

“Y-you liked it…” Chara offered. “Your eyes…”

“Ah…” Blue’s eyes hadn’t changed back yet. He mumbled something unintelligible.

“I didn’t catch that.” Chara leaned in.

“F…t…” Blue looked away.

“I still didn’t…” Chara frowned. She had wanted to make him flustered, but not _this_ flustered.  
  
“That was my first kiss.” Blue finally muttered under his breath, but Chara was close enough to hear.

Her face reddened.

“O-oh! I didn’t know!” She blinked softly. He laughed again.

“It… was a good first kiss.” He admitted. She smiled.

“There can be more.” She offered.

“I’d like that.” Blue grinned.

“Wanna taste my smoothie?”

 

* * *

 

Cross had arrived at Dream’s place exactly an hour after Dream had texted him. They sat on the couch, watching a TV show on Underflix. Dream had chosen it specifically to see if it would get a rise out of his boyfriend, but no matter what happened, Cross sat stone-faced, staring at the television’s screen. It was disappointing, to say the least. And another thing bothered the little skeleton.

They were sitting almost a foot apart from each other.

Cross seemed relaxed; his arms spread across the back of the couch, and a leg crossed over the other. But Dream didn’t want him relaxed. He wanted to be curled up in the crook of his arm, head on his chest and Cross’s arm wrapped around him. However, he also didn’t want to be the one to initiate it. He wanted Cross to gather him up of his own volition.

“Hey, Cross,” Dream started just as the credits for the episode started to play. “Do you want-“

“Yeah.” Cross cut him off.

“I didn’t finish.” Dream laughed. “What do you want?”

“Uh…” Cross looked at him awkwardly. “I uh… Kind of want to kiss you.”

“Oh. I was going to ask if you wanted some pretzels.”

“Oh. I could go for some pretzels.” Cross shrugged slightly. Dream smiled softly.

“But I think I’d like a kiss better.” He suggested teasingly.

Cross gave one of his tiny smiles.

“Okay.” He said softly and readjusted his position so he could move closer more easily. He gently cupped Dream’s cheek, staring down at him.

When they had first met, Cross’s stare was one of the most terrifying things he had ever had aimed at him. Now, it was as comforting as warm bowl of tomato soup on a snowy day. Even more so, probably. Those mismatched eyes held no malice, only mirth when he looked at him.

At long last, Cross closed the distance between them. Dream happily closed his eyes, leaning into the kiss. He sighed contentedly through his nasal cavity, basking in their soft, gentle connection. He lost himself in the moment, only to be brought back by Cross’s tongue timidly asking for the kiss to be deepened. He opened his eyes ever so slightly to find those beautiful eyes looking back at him, watching him so tenderly that thoughts of anything else had vanished. He opened his mouth, awarding the brave knight his prize.

Cross gently moved his hand to cup the back of Dream’s skull, cradling it in his palm like a precious treasure. Their eyes closed once more to fully appreciate the moment. When Cross tried to pull away, Dream followed after him, chasing the high only a kiss from the other could give him. Cross eagerly greeted him, softly pulling the smaller skeleton onto his lap, diminishing the space between that had so irked Dream just moments before.

Cross’s free hand trailed up and down the length of Dream’s spine gingerly smoothing the creases of his shirt and sending tingles throughout the smaller’s body. The touch was soft, a gentle whisper of words unspoken and actions untaken. It was soft and languid, not a feverish rush of a creature begging for more. They were tasting each other for the first, both unsure and certain.

They broke away only to gaze at one another for a fleeting moment before attaching again. There was no obligation for further intimacy; only the need to stay coupled with the other. Dream snaked his hand gently under Cross’s shirt collar, gently massaging the vertebra just underneath. Cross made a soft sound, giving Dream satisfied chills.

The two were so wrapped within the sickly-sweet melody they created that they didn’t hear the soft sound of a key sliding into the lock and twisting.

There was a long list of things Nightmare never wanted to experience in his life. The second spot was occupied by seeing a twenty-four-foot anaconda in the flesh.

The first?

Witnessing sis brother sitting on Cross’s lap, his hand touching the other’s bare flesh, their mouths hungrily trying to devour each other.

When they finally noticed him, Dream quickly pulled back, though he didn’t move away.

“Night!” He gasped, his face flushed. “I-I wasn’t expecting you!”

“Uh.” Nightmare looked between the two of them, his face twisted in shock before warping into the worst scowl Dream had ever seen on the eldest twin.

“Night?” Dream asked, finally moving to get off of Cross. Sunshine hopped down from her perch and went to greet her uncle, chirping happily.

“No.” Nightmare shook his head and began backing away. “I can’t. I can’t with this.”

“Nightmare?” Dream continued moving toward him, worried.

“Don’t.” Nightmare finally turned and fled from the apartment, leaving the door wide open.

“Nightmare?!” Dream cried, his eyes widening in realization. He turned to look at Cross.

“He… He…” Dream stuttered, staring at his boyfriend, horrified at what he had done. “You. He… you…” He began to shake his head, eyes filling with tears.

Cross jumped up, gently placing his hands on Dream’s shoulders.

“No. He doesn’t.” He assured, staring into his eyes. “He told me he didn’t.”

“He… told you? Why would he tell you?” Dream shuddered.

“Before our first lunch… date, he came to me to tell me I better not hurt you.” Cross smiled gently, watching the golden one’s expression begin to relax. “He was very fired up about it.”

Dream smiled every so slightly.

“He did that for me?” He asked meekly, gently wiping a tear from one of his eye sockets. Cross smiled and nodded.

“I’m going to go find him. You stay here.” He commanded.

“Shouldn’t I go after him?” Dream asked.

“Maybe. But I think I can talk to him better.” Cross shrugged.

“Why?”

“He doesn’t know me that well.” Cross moved to the door. “I’ll be right back.”

It didn’t take him long to find the other twin, for Nightmare had only made it to the outside steps before he needed to sit down and try to calm himself down.

“Hey.” Cross greeted as he stepped up behind him.

“What do you want?” Nightmare asked shakily. Cross sat next to him, ignoring that the other scooted an extra inch away.

“You like me.” It wasn’t a question. It was a simple fact, finally stated aloud and breaking the taboo placed on it.

“…” Nightmare said nothing. It was obvious now, and not something he could easily refute.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Cross asked.

“Would it have mattered?” The other finally looked at Cross only to find those intense eyes fixed on him, really seeing him for the first time. It was everything he had ever wanted… But not like this.

“No.” Cross didn’t blink. “Why didn’t you tell Dream?”

“You make him happy.” Nightmare gritted his teeth. “He’s been sad for so long. If I told him… I’d take that away from him. He wouldn’t date you. Even if I couldn’t have you, he wouldn’t let himself be happy.”

“That’s kind of you.” Cross admitted, still watching him. “He was pretty freaked out back there.”

Nightmare looked away. He had no plans of going back and explaining himself.

“I’ll tell him you just weren’t expecting it.” Cross offered. Nightmare glanced back at him and nodded.

They sat in silence for a moment, both thinking.

“Why don’t you like me back?” Nightmare finally asked, looking up at the overcast sky. “It might help me get over you.”

“…” Cross was quiet. “I don’t dislike you. You just never gave me a chance to like you.”

Nightmare frowned.

“What do you mean?” He whispered.

“You’re closed off. I’m no better, but I let people in when they want to be. You…” Cross looked over at him. “You don’t let people get the chance to decide if they want to be let in.”

Nightmare’s frown deepened, feeling tears prick at his eyes.

“What do you suggest, then?” He spat, still not looking at his companion.

“Be vulnerable. If you want to know someone, make an effort. A _real_ effort; not whatever the hell you did with me.” Cross said. When Nightmare didn’t reply, he continued. “Isn’t there someone you wouldn’t mind knowing better?”

Nightmare hesitated as thoughts of the soft touch of slick fur, the grating sound of a coffee beans being ground, the smell of cinnamon and nutmeg as they were added to warm, frothy milk, the taste of bitter warmth greeting his tongue, and the sight of a soft smile tinged with sadness.

“Yes.” He said flatly.

“Then do something about it.”

Nightmare finally looked at him again.

“How?” It was a soft plea.

“Let yourself be seen.”

 

* * *

 

Nightmare wasted no time in applying Cross’s advice.

He immediately left his brother’s apartment and took the bus downtown to his favorite coffee shop. It wasn’t very busy, so Nightmare was able to storm straight to the counter and thrust his hands onto the wood.

“Nightmare!” Ccino said happily, turning around from the froth machine to look at him. “Sansy’s probably in the back. I’ll go get hi-“

“I’m not here for Sansy.” Nightmare frowned, glaring at the other.

“Oh?” Ccino laughed nervously. “What is it?”

“Poetry night.”

“Oh!” Ccino’s face brightened. “You finally want to sign up for poetry night? I hope you don’t mind, but I saw that you’ve been writing when you’re here and I was hoping you sign up someday…”

“No, I don’t want to read.” Nightmare struggled. “I want to help out.”

“Help? I don’t really need any help… But thanks!” Ccino laughed softly.

“I don’t need to be paid.”

“Oh. Okay, you can help out then.”

“I’ll see you Friday.”

 

* * *

 

Killer waited.

He waited on the couch, counting down the minutes until his roommate returned. He was more or less enamored with the skeleton. They had been roommates since their first year in college, in the dorms. They complemented each other in their living habits; where one was lacking, the other was abundant.

But recently, their relationship had changed.

Killer had always been waiting for a moment to sneak his way into a different relationship with his roommate. He had been waiting since he saw him, spread out on the bed opposite of his, a book in hand.

_“Killer?” He has asked._

_“Nightmare?” He asked in return._

_“Yeah.”_

And with those words, Killer was helpless.

The perfect opportunity came when Nightmare’s brother started talking to that Cross guy. When Killer found out that Nightmare was seeking to distract himself with one-night stands, he whispered in his roommate’s ear: “It’s too dangerous to sleep with guys you meet on the internet.” “It’s better if you just have one, steady partner that you know is clean.” “You don’t have to look far. I’m right here.” 

Nightmare allowed himself to be distracted by Killer. He let himself be caressed, pleasured, and dominated. Killer learned his sweet spots, all the places he could touch, kiss, and bite to get a reaction out of him. He knew just how to position the smaller body to send Nightmare into cries and screams, his breathless voice begging him for more. He loved the look of the usually stoic poet underneath him, unraveled and domesticated.

Often, Nightmare would lose himself and close his eyes, imagining it was someone else above him. And Killer let him. Even when he called out that bastard’s name, over and over again, Killer didn’t let himself get mad. He had everything he wanted right then, right there, all under his control. Someday, Nightmare would scream his name.

The door creaked open and Killer immediately perked up, looking towards the door.

“Hey.” He said, trying not to sound too eager.

“Hey.” Nightmare sighed as he came in, locking the door behind him.

“Tense?” Killer asked. Their codeword.

Without hesitating, Nightmare replied:

“Yeah.”

“My room?”

“Where else?” Nightmare grumbled as he set his bag down.

 

* * *

 

That night, Killer had Nightmare on his back so he could see his face. He wanted to commit every single encounter to memory. He wanted every expression Nightmare made to be kept with him forever. The way the longer Killer moved in a certain pattern made his partner smile ever so slightly. How when he pushed in too hard, Nightmare cried out. Tonight was the night he was using all of his proven maneuvers, wanting to soothe himself with the sights. He wanted his ears to ring with Nightmare’s beautiful voice.

He watched as Nightmare’s eyes closed and he went into his fantasy, his moans becoming breathy and satisfied. Killer tried to get him to open his eyes and turn his focus back on him, on who the real person who was making him feel so good, but he could never get those pretty little purple eyes to open again.

To add insult to injury, Nightmare summoned a new person to his bed with a beautiful, breathy crescendo of:

“Ccino!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 20! 
> 
> I never thought this thing would get this far, or as popular as it has. So thank you, everyone, for reading this silly little thing I wanted to make because there's too much sadness out there! 
> 
> Thank you, thank you!
> 
> I've also made the executive decision so update only once a week, seeing as how this chapter was over 6,000 words and 19 was about 5,400. If I update once a week, there will be longer chapters since I'll be able to get everything in there. ~~This still didn't have everything I wanted but what can you do?~~


	21. An Epic Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Error has his final interview for his dream job, and Nightmare tells Cross a secret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you like [thewindowsshutdownnoise](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewindowsshutdownnoise)'s work? Consider buying them a ko-fi [here!](https://ko-fi.com/thewindowsshutdownnoise) They're going through a hard time and could really use it! If you want to know more about the situation and other ways to help, head [here!](https://thewindowsshutdownnoise.tumblr.com/post/184553455736/non-binary-lupus-patient-needs-help-getting-off)

Ink woke that morning quite a bit before his alarm, but with a small smile on his face all the same.

He turned onto his side and ever so gently pressed his forehead into Error’s back, just between the scapulae. He moved his forehead back and forth softly, trying not to wake his partner but still trying to comfort himself. It had been days since Error returned home, and they had fallen easily into the routine of a cohabitating couple. Even if Error had been a straight jackass when he got home, Ink had forgiven him quickly.

_“Welcome home!” Ink opened the door happily. Before he could get his bearings, he was scooped up and spun around. He laughed. “Miss me that much?”_

_Error stopped twirling and kicked the door shut behind him. He grinned up at his lover, who had wrapped his legs around his waist and arms around his neck, no signs of discomfort on his face from being picked up so haphazardly._

_“Just really in love with you.” Error answered and moved to kiss Ink before promptly dropping the artist. “What the HELL is that thing?”_

_“Error!” Ink cried, pulling himself up and out of the heap he had become on the floor. “What the fuck?”_

_Ink stood and followed Error’s gaze to the coffee table, where his freshly painted porcelain piggy bank sat. It was a patchwork of different colors and styles, Ink having painted over the factory colors. He had also given the pig a face, making the poor creature have an unfortunate mix of a  Picasso face on a van Gogh body._

_“What the fuck?” Error gestured to Ink’s homemade decoration._

_“My contribution to the apartment.” Ink said proudly. “I can see you like it.”_

_“No… No, I don’t.” Error shook his head, still staring at the bank in horror._

_“What do you mean? It’s a work of art!” Ink looked from the piggy bank to his boyfriend. “It’s one of a kind.”_

_“If this was a farm that thing would have been drowned.”_

_Ink gasped._

_“How can you not like it?! Dream loved these things.”_

_“I don’t think he did. No one could.”_

_“He told me he liked them!”_

_“He lied.”_

_“Why would he lie to me?”_

_“Because he loved you.”_

_“YOU love me.”_

_“…He’s a nicer person than I am.”_

_“True…” Ink sighed. “So, you really don’t like it?”_

_“No. It’s freaky and it’s staring at me.” Error crossed his arms, grumbling._

_“Aw. I think it’ll grow on you.” Ink smiled and picked up the piggy bank, holding it out to Error._

_“Nope. I can’t have sex with that thing watching. It’s an abomination.” Error took a step back._

_Ink’s eyes widened and he looked down at the little swine. On one hand, Ink didn’t want to get rid of the pig. On the other, if he didn’t, he probably wouldn’t have sex again in this lifetime. A decision was made._

_“Okay… I’ll get rid of it.” He frowned. “I don’t want to throw it away though.”_

_“Don’t you have a desk at work?” Error asked. He was sure Chara would appreciate it. In the worse way._

_“Oh…! I’ll put it there!” Ink grinned and moved to the door. “But for now, it has to go back to my… the other apartment.”_

Ink sighed softly and closed his eyes once more. He wanted to go back to sleep, but he couldn’t help but be excited. And a bit nervous. Today was the day of Error’s second interview with the company he wanted to work for. Error had explained to him that they were a top company in the cyber security field; probably one of the best in the world. He even admitted to Ink that he was the best in his class, and the company had come to recruit him, specifically. He felt good about the interview, but Ink was still apprehensive. What if they didn’t hire Error? Who wouldn’t like Error? He supposed a lot of people, but if he was that good at his job, wouldn’t they want him anyway?

He continued his gentle nuzzle, the scratch of bone on bone soothing him. The upside of this interview was that he would get to see Error in his suit again. He wanted, more than anything, for Error to get this job. Then, Ink could happily rid him of said suit for the night. He smiled happily to himself, just thinking about how delighted they would both be if Error got the job. He sighed again.

“…why are you awake?” Error asked groggily.

“I just… I’m excited about today…” Ink gently wrapped his arms around Error’s ribcage now that he knew he wouldn’t wake him up by doing so. “And nervous…”

“You shouldn’t be the one nervous.” Error grumbled and shifted so that he was facing Ink.

“I want you to be happy.” Ink offered with a small smile and a shrug.

“I _am_ happy.” Error gave a sleepy smile. “Right here, right now. No matter what happens, I’ll be happy.”

Ink blushed and squeezed his arms tightly around his lover.

“Ow! Ink, that hurts.” Error growled.

“It’s because you were being cheesy!” Ink laughed and loosened his arms.

“We have thirty minutes before the alarm goes off…” Error grumbled.

“We could cuddle?” Ink offered, even as he watched Error’s eyes slide shut once again, and heard the soft sound of sleep pass through his lover’s mouth. “Or maybe not.” He laughed softly and pulled him close.

Living with Error was nothing like it had been with Dream. He was always amazed at the little differences he continued to find between the two of them. Anyone should have been happy to have Dream at their side. He was kind, smart, and liked to take care of others. Error was smart, curmudgeonly, and almost always a complete ass. But he didn’t get annoyed with Ink for forgetting things. He didn’t mind the little messes he left as long as he promised to pick it up when he was done. Ink didn’t even mind that the apartment was a bit too small for two people; he never wanted to be in a different room than Error. When he was living with Dream, he would spend most of his time in his studio, even if he just wanted to lay on the floor and listen to music.

He and Error spent their nights pretty much the same: Come home, figure out something for dinner (usually something frozen), then go their own ways. It was getting close to finals for Error, so he was starting to have a lot to do considering his impending graduation, plus he had to do work some nights as well. Ink was happy to sit on the couch and draw, or even try to play some of Error’s video games. He played a game with Cross one night… And was brutally dominated. Error had just laughed at him when he complained, telling him,

_“I told you so.”_

Ink smiled sleepily to himself. He hadn’t been sure what life was going to bring him when he not only broke up with Dream, but also when he moved out, but it seemed life was finally getting on track for him. No more loveless relationship, no more job at the craft store, and no more being unhappy.

His eyes slowly closed, his comforting thoughts lulling him back to sleep.

Life was going to be a lot better now that Error was with him.

 

* * *

 

That morning, Geno was filled with determination.

He walked into the pediatrics unit and began his day fervor. He made his rounds, cheerful as usual, while still holding onto that purposeful drive stirring in his bones. He worked hard, diligently even, just so he could make it to his first break. When the clock hit ten, right on the dot, he was going to find Reaper.

He had been thinking about the pathologist much more since the incident. (He called it the “incident” because it separated himself from the situation, helping him to recover. The suggestion to call it that actually came from Fresh, who was a master of keeping himself at a distance from others, and so, Geno took the advice.) Reaper had been kind to him and had given him space, even if he saw him while they were at work together. He didn’t shy away from Geno, but he did keep a respectful distance from him.

Thus, when the clock struck the hour, Geno went to the morgue.

He thought the morgue would freak him out more than it did. It wasn’t like he had never handled a cadaver before, but going into the “crypt”, as it were, was different. He knew the lockers were occupied by those unfortunate enough to pass within the hospital’s sterile walls. But in going to the morgue, he never had to actually go _into_ it. He simply had to go through the visitor’s door and up to the desk, ask for his doctor, and wait while they went to gather him.

“Oh. Geno, wasn’t it?” The attendant asked as soon as he entered. He had never seen her before (that he remembered) and wondered just how far-traveled the whispers of his and Reapers “courting” really were. Surely, she knew his name (the pathologist probably told her at some point or another), but he hadn’t expected her to know him on sight.

“Yeah… I was wondering if I could talk to Reaper?” Geno gave her one of his award-winning smiles.

“Sure. Let me go find him.” She stood and headed towards the back. Geno spied an intercom she could have easily called him on, but he suspected she wanted to deliver the news of his unexpected arrival in person. She came back in no time at all and told him he could take a seat, if he wanted. Reaper was just “finishing up.”

Geno decided to take one of those seats and leaned back, looking around the room. The reception area was quite comfy, which he supposed it was good form for it to be so. The only people really coming in this way would be families, medical supply company representatives, and unaffiliated doctors like himself. The morgue was already a place of death; they didn’t need to make it worse by having an unwelcoming reception area.

He kept an eye on his watch to make sure he wasn’t wasting too much time waiting on the doctor. What he wanted to talk about _could_ be texted, but Geno wanted to tell him directly. And he still wasn’t sure if he wanted Reaper to have his number just yet. He would have to see.

The attendant must have spotted him fidgeting and went into the back once more, coming out with the man of the hour.

“Geno.” Reaper greeted coolly. Geno stood, mustering another of his smiles. Though, at this point, he figured Reaper was immune, since he saw them so frequently when he followed him around the hospital.

“Hey, Reaper. Can I talk to you for a moment?” He asked. Reaper nodded.

“Sure. Should we go outside?” The doctor asked and Geno nodded in return. They moved outside of the waiting room and into the hall, just out of earshot of the morgue’s front desk.

“What’d you want to talk?” Reaper gave him his usual, easy grin.

“I just… wanted to thank you for… everything you did. I really… appreciate it.” Geno muttered, hiding behind his scarf.

“No problem. I don’t… have the same issues, as most doctors, but I know it’s not easy to go through something like that. And I care about you…” He shrugged. Geno tried to push down the hint of a blush that was beginning to grace his cheekbones with little success.

“Thanks.” Geno repeated, his words muffled by his scarf. “I, uh… Would you…?” He looked away, hating himself for getting so flustered.

“Would I what? Ask and I’ll make it happen. You want a stuffed unicorn named Fresh Hell that eats rainbow candy and loves bus passes, I’ll get ‘im for you.”

“What? No, I don’t want a unicorn named Fresh Hell... Why the bus passes? You know what, never mind, I don’t want to know.” Geno spat, shaking his head slightly and trying to keep himself from laughing at the sheer stupidity of it.

“Okay? Then what do you want?” Reaper prodded, watching the other’s reaction with amusement. Geno took a deep breath, trying to get the image of a stuffed unicorn sitting on top of a pile of expired bus passes out of his head.

“We never went on our date. I’d like to reschedule.” Geno uttered, never taking his eye off Reaper’s.

“Technically, _I_ went on our date.” Reaper returned.

“Okay, then let’s go on one with me there.” Geno sighed.

“Okay. When?” Reaper grinned at him, and Geno could have sworn it seemed more genuine than it had a moment before.

“Saturday…?” Geno offered.

“Saturday. No cat cafes this time.”

“A regular café then?” Geno asked.

“That works for me. Text me the details, if you still have my number.”

“I still have it.” Geno assured him, watching that grin grow just a tiny bit more.

“Good. I have to get back. Thank for stopping by.”

“Uh… yeah, no problem.”

 

* * *

 

Nightmare had been going through his day, head in the clouds and the ground nowhere in sight.

It had been that way ever since he had taken Cross’s advice and went to confront Ccino. Helping at poetry night had proved to be more of a lesson in hard work than love. He spent the night running back and forth from table to table, refilling drinks or bringing lattes and macchiatos to the cafes patrons as they enjoyed the performers on stage. He couldn’t even remember any of the poems that were read. When he got home that night, he was too tired to accept Killer’s advances and went straight to bed, feet throbbing.

Even if he hadn’t been able to talk to Ccino in depth, he still felt that he had gotten to see a different side of him. He was a hard worker, though he made it look easy. To do all the tasks he and Nightmare tackled on his own was something most monsters would drop dead from. Nightmare thought it might be some kind of magical stimulant, seeing as how Ccino seemed to only drink hot cocoa – piled with marshmallows - while working that night. Even though the night was fruitless in really connecting with the barista, he was able to get his foot in the door.

_“Do you manage this café all on your own?” Nightmare asked as they were cleaning up._

_“Yep! Own it, too. It’s been in my family for ages.” Ccino smiled._

_“Wow You’re really young to inherent it.”_

_“I’m not so young, actually. You’re a sophomore, right? That would make me…” Ccino screwed his face in thought. “A little over ten years older than you, give or take some?”_

That little revelation almost threw Nightmare into a panic.

How do you woo an older man?

Especially one who might see you as some angsty college kid?

He had spent many nights thinking his predicament over. He had no one to really ask and searching on the internet led him to some less-than-savory websites. The only person he could think of to ask was Cross, who had pushed him toward Ccino in the first place.

After his last class finished for the day, he made his way to the usual room located in the foreign language building. He really wished he could drop from anime club. He had joined it thinking that _maybe_ he would make friends, but he ended up sitting in the back and reading the whole time. Until Cross joined and he became infatuated with the stoic, yet childish graduate student.

Nightmare entered the room and sat down in his usual seat, moving to take a book from his messenger bag. He supposed he could quit the club now that Cross was of no interest to him.

Well, he had a bit of interest.

Feelings don’t vanish with a snap of the fingers but focusing on Ccino and being plowed by Killer till he saw white was certainly a good start. He was thankful for Killer helping him out, even if it was a strange way to comfort someone. He had had suspicions that Killer might… feel something for him, but it was good to know it had just been lust. It would have made things awkward between them, to say the least, and he liked having Killer as a roommate.

 “Bruh!”

Nightmare sighed. Idiot #1 had arrived.

“Dude!”

Idiot #2.

He would have to wait until after club to speak with Idiot #2. And hope Idiot #1 didn’t want to stick around. He usually sneaked off work to come, anyway. Nightmare was curious as to why he hadn’t been fired yet.

“Nightmare!”

_Oh stars, no!_

The small poet decided to pretend like he hadn’t heard their joint cry of his unfortunate moniker.

“Nightskelebruh, hey!”

He continued to bury his head in his book, going so far as to lift it higher in order to cover his entire face.

“Nightmare.” 

That calm, authoritative voice finally made him look up.

Cross was standing in front of him, grinning with his accomplice by his side.

“What?” He hissed. He really shouldn’t have come today. Had he known he would be the fixation of dunces, he would have gone straight home. He could see a few of the other members of the club watching them curiously. This was a true nightmare.

“You’re sitting with us today.” Cross announced.

“No.” Nightmare tried not to sound as horrified as he felt.

“Come on, bruh! It’ll be fun!” Epic egged him on.

“No.” Nightmare finished with finality.

“Yes.” Cross quickly scooped Nightmare’s book out of his hands. “If you want to see your beloved Poe ever again.”

Nightmare scowled. He could simply walk away and leave his book to fend for itself. But… He did really love the author, and the book was a collectible edition. 

“Okay.” He sighed, defeated.  
  
“You did it, bruh!” Epic cheered as the trio made their way to front, sitting Nightmare between the two of them.

_I’m going to die of shame._ Nightmare thought begrudgingly to himself.

 

* * *

 

The rest of anime club had gone… surprisingly well.

At first, Nightmare didn’t want to participate in the idiots’ games.

He tried his hardest to fend the two off, but they would pull him up anyway, making him mimic the characters on screen. He had been mortified. Truly horrified. But…

The two had a way of getting him to relax.

Perhaps it was Epic’s way of making everything completely ridiculous, like nothing else in the world mattered except having fun. Or maybe it was because of Cross’s soft encouragement. Most likely, it was probably because Nightmare wasn’t the biggest idiot of the three.

He might have even laughed a few times.

When their time was up, Cross happily gave Nightmare his book back.

“Not so bad, yeah?” Cross winked at him, and the poet expected to feel butterflies or hear birds singing, but… he felt nothing. It was a welcome emptiness.

“I guess…” He huffed, putting his book away. “Cross? Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah.” Cross turned his full attention onto his boyfriend’s brother. Epic yelled something about being late and rushed out the door, giving neither of them heed.

“I need help with that… person I want to get closer to.” Nightmare explained, trying to force the ensuing blush away. Cross just grinned at the dusting of purple, Nightmare reminding him of a certain someone.

“I might not have good advice, but I’ll try.” The older skeleton offered.

“Okay. So. He’s ten years older than me.” He explained.

“People are friends with younger folk all the time.” Cross shrugged.

“I don’t want to be friends with him.” Nightmare explained.

“Oh….?” Cross frowned, studying Nightmare’s expression. “…oh!”

Nightmare simply nodded.

“Well…” Cross looked Nightmare up and down. He wanted to say that Nightmare should use his natural charm and youth to reel the guy in, but Nightmare didn’t quite have those assets. He was an acquired taste, like a musty vintage wine. His strengths were almost the opposite of Dream’s: he was quiet, serious, and mature, even.

“You should remember you’re an adult too.” Cross finally answered. “Age doesn’t matter as long as you’re both on the same page. Does that help?”

Nightmare thought about it.

“Not really. But I appreciate the effort.” He shrugged as Cross smiled sheepishly.

“Sorry I couldn’t be more help… I guess I’ll see you next week?”

“Yeah. Oh, Cross?” Nightmare asked, watching Cross perk up. “Thanks for helping. I have a gift in return.”

“A gift?” Cross was intrigued. Nightmare smiled slightly.

“My brother. He likes mini golf but has no one to go with.”

Cross let the information sink in before grinning.

“Thanks. I’ll use that.”

 

* * *

 

Ink sat on the couch, waiting nervously.

He tried to draw but couldn’t summon anything recognizable from his pencils. He tried to watch TV but couldn’t focus. He finally settled on scrolling up and down through his Undernet feed, his eyes glazed over.

Error was going to be home any minute. He had texted Ink to let him know he was on his way, and that he would tell him about the interview when he got home. Ink stopped by the grocery store and got the chocolate cake and had the pizza already in the website’s cart. He was prepared for good news, but his preparations would suffice if there was bad news. They could eat their disappointment away. Not the healthiest coping mechanism, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

He ground his teeth against each other, trying to steady his breathing. It was going to be good news. It HAD to be good news.

He heard a key slide into the lock and he instantly perked, watching the door open. Error appeared, wearing the magic suit (though right now Ink was too worked up to fully appreciate it). His face revealed nothing.

“Hey, Ink.” He greeted, closing the door behind him.

“Hey…” Ink simply stared up at him, waiting.

“What’s with that look? It’s like you’re waiting for me to tell you something.” Error’s face remained neutral.

“I am! Tell me!” Ink cried, hopping out of his seat. “I’m so nervous!”

“I got it.” Error grinned. Ink broke into a smile and started towards his lover, ready to congratulate him. “But they want me at the firm on the other side of the country.”

Ink stopped in his tracks.

“Th-they what?” He whispered.

“They want me to go to another firm. The pay is a lot better than what they can offer here, plus it won’t be so gray and cold all the time.”

“I can’t.”

“You… can’t?” Error asked, one of his browbones cocked.

“I can’t do that. I can’t move away from everyone… I-I can’t be away from you.” Ink’s eyes widened in horror. “Error… If-If you go… I don’t…I can’t.”

“You wouldn’t stay with me if I went?” Error asked, frowning.

“I…” Ink swallowed. “I don’t… I don’t…”

Ink’s thoughts were incoherent, even worse than usual. He couldn’t NOT be with Error. It just wasn’t a possibility. He refused to even think about it. But to leave Blue, Dream, Chara, his job? He couldn’t imagine it.

Error moved quickly in front of him, pulling him tightly into his chest.

“I turned it down.” He stated.

Ink felt the tension simultaneously release and gather in his body.

“Y-you what?” He asked, his voice muffled by Error’s shirt.

“I turned it down.” Error let out a soft laugh. “I can’t be without you, Ink.”

“I…” Ink finally pulled back and stared up at Error, eye lights changing into crosshairs. “But that’s your DREAM job! How could you just let it get away?!”

“Do you want me here or not?” Error laughed. “I didn’t give it up. I negotiated.”

“You negotiated?” Ink asked, his eyes still stuck.

“Yep. I can stay here, for a cut in pay. It’s still six figures, so the drop doesn’t bother me too much.”

“Oh… I see…” Ink sighed in relief, eye lights finally sliding out of their offensive shape. “So that means we can stay here…”

He paused.

“Wait! What do you mean still six figures?!” He could feel his stomach lurching.

“Yeah? The starting pay for cyber security analysts is pretty high, and they’re a top company… I thought you knew?” Error grinned at him.

“No! I-I” Ink couldn’t hold it in any longer.

For the first time in twelve years, Ink threw up his black, inky bile right onto his lover’s nice suit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Updates will now be occurring on Wednesdays, once a week!**
> 
> Thanks for reading and supporting me!


	22. Once Upon a Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Geno decides to never accept book recommendations from his cohorts again, and Ink begins naming his children.

Nightmare had a uniform.

It was an unofficial uniform. A simple apron and a baseball cap with a cat embroidered on it. Ccino had seemed so happy with himself when he presented it to the smaller skeleton.

_“Look, Nightmare! I found these in the storage closet. You can wear them tonight so everyone knows you’re part of the crew.” Ccino grinned at him as he offered the two pieces of clothing to the younger._

Nightmare hated it.

He went to the bathroom to look himself in the mirror and… He didn’t even look like a cool, “hip” barista. No, he looked like a cookie cutter, broke college student who was having to work at a café to make ends meet. The worst part? He wasn’t even getting paid.

But Ccino… He looked so happy when he put them on. A _genuine_ smile.

Nightmare decided that was worth the horrendous uniform.

The night passed much like the past Friday night; he was refilling and moving back and forth between tables, taking and delivering orders. He wasn’t quite as tired today and was able to listen to a few excerpts of poems as they were performed. He felt they were a bit lackluster that night, but everyone had their good days and bad days for their creative outlets. Him included.

He hadn’t really been able to write since he had approached Ccino.

All he wanted to do was write poems about the shop owner, but when he tried, his mind came up blank. What could he say? What words could he string together to make his boss’s sneaking of marshmallows when he thought no one was looking seem elegant? It made him seem like a child, really. He didn’t feel confident that he could truly capture Ccino’s essence, and it frustrated him.

So, he didn’t write.

“Good job tonight, Nightmare.” Ccino greeted him just as the last guest left. They still needed to clean up, and Nightmare honestly thought about skipping out that night. But… it would mean less time with Ccino, so he compromised with himself. He took off the ridiculous uniform and laid it on the counter.

“Thanks… You too.” Nightmare replied, taking some of the cleaning supplies and heading to the tables to wipe them down. He had never worked before this, but he was a fast learner and got the hang of the nightly duties from the week before.

Ccino joined him not too long afterward, humming softly to himself. He was tired and wanted nothing more than to go to bed upstairs, but if he didn’t finish the closing duties tonight, he’d have to do them in the morning. And now that he had Nightmare to help on Fridays, he was relieved. He wasn’t getting any younger, and all the sweet drinks weren’t exactly good for his health. Sometimes he thought about taking up jogging, then he reminded himself that was a horrible idea. He wasn’t going to be running anywhere anytime soon.

He glanced at Nightmare, feeling a bit guilty. He wished he had something to pay the kid with. Sales _were_ up on Fridays, now that he was helping and they could make more drinks for the poetry patrons. Maybe someday he’d be able to pay him something.

“Nightmare…” Ccino started, breaking the silence. The college student looked up from his work. “Why did you want to start working poetry nights?”

Nightmare’s cheeks colored and he began to stammer, unable to immediately come up with an excuse.

“I… I… You… There’s…”

“You didn’t want to pay the cover charge, did you?” Ccino finished for him, grinning. Nightmare closed his mouth, giving a simple nod, for once thankful of Ccino being a bit dense.

“You write poetry, though… You wouldn’t have to pay if you performed.” The barista offered.

Nightmare shook his head again.

“I can’t…” He sighed softly, looking away. “They’re no good… I don’t want people hearing them.”

“I’m sure they’re not bad. You seem to work really hard at it.” He reassured his younger companion.

“They _are._ ” Nightmare’s frown deepened.

“Why don’t you let me read one and I can be the judge of that? I’ve listened to a lot of poems in my life.” Ccino set his things down. Nightmare eyed him suspiciously.

“I don’t have my notebook.”

“Don’t be silly. I know you carry it everywhere.” Ccino continued to smile and stretched out his hand, waiting for the little black notebook to be placed in it.

Nightmare flinched. He didn’t know that Ccino was that observant… Or that observant of him, at least. He frowned, feeling defeated by that smile, and reached into his jeans’ back pocket and produced the notebook. He opened it to a poem he was sure Ccino would at least find amusing and handed it off.

Ccino gratefully took the notebook and began to the scan the poem.

“Aw, it’s about Sansy.” He grinned. It wasn’t the best poem, no, but he enjoyed it nonetheless. His eyes moved to the next page, seeing the remnants of one that had been ripped out, and he briefly grieved the loss of the page. What could have been so abominable that a page of such a nice notebook needed to be ripped out?

Then he began scanning the following poem and his eyes widened.

“What?” Nightmare asked anxiously, watching Ccino’s eyes move over the page. The longer he read, the more certain Nightmare knew that he was NOT reading the Sansy cat poem anymore.

Then, Ccino started reading it aloud:

 

“You with the golden eyes,

The saccharine smile.

You, whose blithe aura intoxicates

Anyone who even breathes in your orbit.

You are the sun in a cloudless sky.

A pearl of radiance

That no one can resist to turn their heads to and bask in your resplendent rays

 

And me?

 

I am the shadow,

The moon to your sun.

 

In your gleam bask the saints, the children with stars in their eyes.

In my cold night come the villains,

The vampires, the werewolves,

The monsters under children’s beds.

 

When will my turn be?

When will I be the one to eclipse you?

When will people cast their eyes to the sky and praise my beauty?

Who will be there to enjoy the beauty in the still quietness that your brilliance suffocates?

 

That day will come,

The day of your unholy eclipse.

 

Until then, I am at the mercy of your luster,

Forced to watch as you unknowingly lure creatures to the light.

What they don’t know is that if you get too close to the light,

 

You _burn_.” 

There was silence between them as the barista finished, Nightmare staring at him in horror. Never had he wanted that poem to be read by anyone, much less out loud, to him, in the sound of Ccino’s voice. At that moment, he wished to become a turtle and tuck himself away for the rest of eternity, denying his body the nourishment it needed to continue living so he could finally become the shell he always felt he was.

Ccino looked up at him, a soft smile on his face.

“Nightmare.” He said gently. The poet’s face was immovable, trying not to reveal his true feelings, completely unaware that his visage was stuck in the expression of a rabbit facing down a snake.

“….?” Nightmare made a barely audible sound. Ccino looked back to the poem.

“This… is one of the best poems I’ve ever read.” He grinned.

“…?!” Nightmare’s mouth twitched, trying to muster a smile at the praise from the object of his affection.

“I… really felt everything here… Whoever this is about… Sounds like your relationship is really complicated.” Ccino smiled and gently closed the notebook, offering it to the student. Nightmare timidly took it back.

“It’s… about my brother.” He still couldn’t return the smile, so he instead looked at the ground.

“Your twin?” Ccino inquired.

“Yeah. The one everyone likes.” Nightmare huffed, finally looking back at him. He was expecting the same old song and dance when he admitted to people his feelings towards his brother:

_“You can’t fault him for people liking him!”_

_“You’re just jealous. That’s not fair to him.”_

_“Have you tried talking to him about it?”_

But he got something new that night.

“Sounds rough…” Ccino nodded to himself. He couldn’t relate, since he didn’t have anyone. Not anymore. “You shine on your own, though. I don’t think you see it, but I do.”

Once again, Nightmare wanted to be a turtle and lay down and die, if only to save him from the intense beating of his soul as it tried to escape his ribcage.

“Y-yeah?” He asked. Ccino grinned and nodded.

“You have a lot of talent, Nightmare… I hope someday you’ll have the courage to perform.” Ccino went back to wiping down the tables. “Until then, could I read more of your poems?”

Nightmare didn’t have the heart in him to tell him no.

 

* * *

 

Cross was happy with his and Dream’s recent development.

It was a small thing, really, making out. But Cross learned something very valuable from his soiree that day, even if it had been ruined by a literal nightmare:

Dream wanted him.

He knew Dream wanted him. But had Dream _wanted_ him? Feeling Dream’s tongue with his own, tasting him, Cross had a tiny sample and he was craving more. Cross had wanted to sneak him away when they were at school together, push him against the wall, and quench his thirst.

He could still feel Dream shivering underneath his fingertips, the memory of his vertebrae pressed into his hands. He spent many nights, remembering the way Dream tucked his fingers under his collar, and how he made that stupid sound, even though Dream seemed pleased with himself.

Perhaps Cross hadn’t had much confidence in himself before. He didn’t want to scare Dream off, and Dream… He had been hurt in one of the worst ways a person could be hurt. To think that you’re loved, then be told the opposite… Cross couldn’t imagine. He had hoped Dream wasn’t with him just because he had shown genuine interest in him. He still would have been fine as the distraction. Not forever, but he had been fine with a while.

Tonight, he wanted a repeat.

Dream had invited him over again, to watch some movie or other. (Not a horror film, he had been told.) Cross knew he couldn’t simply pounce on the little skeleton the moment he got there. But… He wasn’t going to wait too long. His whole body screamed for him.

And now, he wasn’t afraid of asking for what he wanted.

He parked his bike just outside of the apartment building, before thinking better of it and wheeled it up onto the sidewalk, next to the building. This WAS a college neighborhood, and it was Friday. He didn’t trust barely-adults when they were drunk. Hell, he barely trusted them to actually show up for his class. He pushed it to just outside of the door and put the kickstand up. His phone dinged.

_Buzzing you in now!_

Cross smiled to himself. Dream had been waiting for him. It only strengthened his resolve.

“Welcome!” Dream greeted him when he got to his apartment door. He held out his arms, waiting for Cross to place himself in them.

The grad student happily obliged and pulled him close. He made sure to tip Dream’s head up and give him a chaste kiss before completely pulling away so he could walk into the apartment.

“It’s just going to be the two of us, right?” Cross asked, eyeing the coffee table where a pizza box was sitting, surrounded by an assortment of snacks and drinks.

“Yeah! Why?” Dream asked as he closed the door.

“Uh…” Cross gestured to the mountain of junk food.

“Oh…” Dream laughed a bit. “I felt bad about only having pretzels last time… Now it’s a real movie night… Are you okay with cheese pizza?”

“Of course.” Cross smiled slightly, almost putting Dream into a fit. He usually couldn’t get a smile out of Cross for a while when they were together. Today, it was almost instant.

Dream led him to the couch and sat him down. He handed Cross a plastic plate before opening the pizza box.

“Help yourself.” He offered, trying to let Cross take the first slice. What ensued was nothing short of a showdown. All they needed were a couple of cowboy hats and boots.

Cross glanced at the untouched, circular piece of bread that held an ocean’s worth of cheese and grease. He quickly looked back to Dream, not moving to take a slice.

“You go first.” Cross insisted, sitting as still as a statue. He wouldn’t fold first.

“I insist.” Dream motioned again for Cross take some of the food he so graciously provided. He had even been able to order it so it would be delivered just before Cross got there, since the motorcyclist was always on time, if not early.

Cross shook his head gently.

You ordered it. You should take the first slice.”

“But you’re my guest. It would be rude of me to take some before you.”

“You waited for me to get here. You must be hungry.”

“I got it for you… I want you to be the first one to eat.”

“Really, you should be the one to get the first slice. You slaved over it all day.”

“Please, Cross, just take the slice or I’ll-“ Dream paused, frowning. “Is this funny to you?”

Cross’s face finally broke out into a wide grin, and the skeleton let out a trill of laughter. Dream thought his soul might just stop. It was the first time he had heard just a hearty chuckle from the other. He clenched his teeth, trying to stop himself from joining. But the more he watched his boyfriend, the more he couldn’t help himself and joined in the mirth.

“Asshole! Take the pizza!” Dream said through his laughs as he pulled a piece from the pie and plopped it unceremoniously onto the other’s plate.

“Sorry… You were just so…” Cross tilted his head, watching Dream. “Cute. And courteous. I really did want you to go first but… I couldn’t stop myself the second time you refused.”

Dream puffed up in a pout.

“I resent that.” He huffed, finally putting some on his own plate. The cheese chased after his slice before finally breaking and leaving a string dangling off the table. Sunshine wasted no time in beginning to play with it, trying to bring it to her mouth with her claws.

“Sunshine no.” Dream quickly scolded and adjusted the piece of cheese so that it was no longer a nuisance to bother the cat.

Cross gently patted Dream’s skull, giving him a soft smile, the effects of their laughter not wearing off just quite yet.

“Don’t worry about it. Sometimes, you should let yourself be first.” He said tenderly before pulling his hand away and using it to lift the pizza to his mouth. “What movie are we watching?”

Dream sighed and sat back, using the remote to start the movie. He had it already pulled up on the TV, just for when Cross arrived. He liked to be prepared.

“It’s a period piece that’s a musical. I love both period pieces and musicals, so it’s perfect…” He glanced sideways at Cross. “You don’t mind, do you?”

“As long as I get to spend time with you, I’m fine.” Cross said around a mouthful of food.

Dream laughed softly. Cross had been so worried about his atrocious eating habits when they first met, but Dream found them charming in their own way. It made Cross seem less… unapproachable. Less like a statue or a guard at the Buckingham Palace. And he cleaned himself up afterwards, so it wasn’t a big deal.

“You’re a dork.” Dream laughed and took a bite of his own pizza, turning to the screen as the movie started. Cross took the hint and made sure not to say anything else. He didn’t want to distract the cute one next to him from his programs.

They sat and watched the movie, eating as they went. Between them, they had almost finished the entire pizza before the midway point. (Though that had been mostly Cross’s doing rather than Dream’s.)

The big ballroom scene came on and Dream began to sway back and forth as the two actors sang about their forbidden love while being passed from partner to partner, always out of reach of each other. He sighed softly just as the two were forced together. Cross watched him, a soft, curious look on his face.

“I didn’t know you were a sucker for romance.” He said quietly, not wanting to disturb the longing atmosphere the scene left around them. Dream slowly turned to look at him, smiling shyly with a golden dust on his cheekbones.

“I… can’t help it. It’s romantic to think about… Being swept around a ballroom, only looking into your beloved’s eyes… Most couples only get that on their wedding day…” Dream sighed longingly.

Cross smiled softly and took the remote, pausing the movie.

“What are you doing?” Dream asked, frowning slightly. Cross put his plate on the table and dug out his phone, scrolling through it before setting that down as well. A soft melody began playing from the device just as he stood and offered his hand to Dream.

“Can I have this dance?” Cross asked, grinning softly. Dream blinked up at him, a bit in disbelief.

“You know how to dance?” Dream balked.

“You’re ruining the moment.” Cross laughed but kept his hand outstretched. Dream shook his head and placed his own hand in his boyfriend’s, letting Cross pull him up.

Cross led him to an open area before pulling him close and into a ballroom stance. He never took his eyes off Dream’s; their eye lights boring into each other with such an intensity that only star-crossed lovers could have ever known. The taller skeleton took the lead, stepping with a practiced accuracy that Dream could barely keep up with. He spun them around, never taking his eyes off of Dream, even when Dream’s steps faltered. He dipped him and pulled him close. The air pulsed with shy yearning from the two.

On the concluding note, the two finished chest to chest, Cross staring subduedly down at his partner, while Dream stared up at him, breathless and unsure of himself. But as Cross leaned in and pressed his mouth to his, he knew what he wanted. He knew what they both wanted.

The kiss was subtle at first, gentle and malleable, their mouths timidly testing each other with amorous, inquisitive touches. It was uncertain who was the first one to deepen the kiss, but when the line had been crossed, they couldn’t keep themselves from each other. Their mouths clashed in fury, hands tugging on obtrusive clothing. Dream rid Cross of his jacket, and the other eagerly pressed him against a wall, his hands gripping the smaller’s hips with a gentle vigor, wanting to be able to rest them on his bare iliac crests. He pulled back ever so slightly, their breaths still mingling, as he asked,

“Are you sure?”

Dream gave it no thought.

“Yes.” He whispered.

Cross kissed him once more, before gently scooping him up, placing Dream’s legs on either side of his waist. He parted again.

“Where?”

“Bedroom.” Dream breathed, moving to kiss Cross’s neck while he ferried them to Dream’s humble bed. Cross twitched and uttered soft sounds as Dream bothered his neck, unsure if he was going to be able to find the room with his mind so foggy.

Luckily, he did, and gently laid Dream down on his back. He stared down at his partner for a moment, basking in the soft beauty the little skeleton seemed to radiate. It wasn’t just in the way he looked, no, Cross found beauty in every crevice of Dream’s being. The way he moved like a gentle breeze and the way he treated everyone as if they were the rarest gem on the entire planet. How he was always taking care of everyone else.

This time, Cross took care of him.

He caressed and massaged all the right spots. He showered Dream’s body with the affection only his mouth was able to fully communicate. He let Dream guide him through the motions: what felt good and what felt right. What pushed him past the point of ecstasy and then again. Cross gave his body as an offering at the altar of his boyfriend, evoking heavenly noises from his precious god.

Afterward, Cross pulled his lover close and tucked his head beneath his chin, and Dream curled into him, clinging to the one person he wanted, more than anything, to stay with him for the night. Cross wasn’t able to refuse, and the two fell asleep that way; embracing the only other person in the world to them, at that moment.

 

* * *

 

Reaper was on time, once again, for his date with Geno.

Geno had planned for them meet at another café, this one located in the middle of the city and not covered in cats. As he stepped in, he noticed a certain ambiance to the place. It seemed to be a local college student hang out, the lights dim and most of the patrons typing away on their laptops. Reaper felt a bit too old to be in such a place, but he could have almost guaranteed that Geno had picked the spot to put him ill at ease. They had a sort of cat and mouse game going on: Reaper would try and catch the mouse unawares, but the mouse was setting traps of his own, always one step ahead of the cat.

He passed by several tables, trademark grin in place and his one eye light moving back and forth, trying to find the red-scarfed skeleton. He saw no sign of the pediatrician-to-be, and he faltered. What if Geno had set him up again? What if he was just toying with him now? He thought perhaps he had shown the guy he wasn’t a total monster from the crypt the past two weeks, but what if it hadn’t been enough?

He passed into the back room, which had a cozier feeling. There were couches set up in various positions on the floor, and mismatched tables placed in front or between them. It looked like a graduate student’s apartment, if the graduate student had a penchant for thrift store couches.

Reaper’s eyes finally settled on what he wanted to see: the back of a skull with a ruby red scarf wrapped around its neck. He grinned to himself, trying not to seem relieved as he approached.

“Look what the cat dragged in.” Reaper gloated as he moved around the couch to face his mouse.

Geno looked up at him, already seeming annoyed. He held an open book in his lap, and a latte with a swan made in the foam was sitting on the table in front of him.

“You’re late.” He sighed.

“I’m right on time.” Reaper grinned, a bit disappointed that he hadn’t had the chance to treat Geno to a drink, since he had gotten there before him. He made up his mind to see what kind of pastries the café sold and get Geno one.

Geno looked at his watch.

“Two minutes late.” Geno held up his wrist and pointed to the clock’s face.

“I didn’t know I needed to run on Geno Time.” The pathologist laughed. “Let me go order and I’ll be back.”

“Fine.”

Reaper did find that the little coffee shop did sell pastries. They had a wide variety, and he settled on pain au chocolat, knowing Geno liked chocolate from those toaster pastries he brought to work for breakfast.

He made his way back to the couch where his little pet was sitting, a plate in one hand and his coffee in the other. He dodged other patrons and furniture with ease, his grace uncanny for someone like him. When he reached his destination, he set the plate down next to Geno’s coffee mug and took his seat beside the young resident, sipping his black coffee.

“Miss me?” He asked his companion.

“You were gone for five minutes.” Geno huffed. “Hungry?”

“That’s for you.” Reaper grinned and nudged the plate closer to him.

“Me? What for?” Geno frowned.

“I was going to treat you today, but you got here before me. So, I got you this.” Reaper’s grin widened. “Something sweet for someone sweet.”

Geno gave the pathologist the look of a constipated toddler who couldn’t quite hold it in anymore.

“Please don’t say that ever again.” He ground out.

“No promises.” Reaper winked with his lit eye, for added effect. Geno groaned, and turned back to his book, the message being relayed loud and clear: stop it or I’m going to ignored you.

“What’re you reading?” He asked, hoping to continue engaging him.

Geno checked the cover.

“Some book one of the other residents recommended… Well, she kind of forced it on me.” Geno shrugged. “It’s supposed to be a great, humorous romance between two people just starting out in the medical field. I think it’s a nurse and a resident doctor.”

Reaper’s eye twitched. You didn’t give that kind of book to just anyone.

“She said maybe if I read it, I’d know how to deal with you better.” He finally looked back to Reaper.

The pathologist, to his credit, didn’t burst out laughing. The corners of his mouth jerked ever so slightly, however, giving him away.

“What? What’s so funny?” Geno demanded.

“You’re reading it.” Reaper pointed out, looking to the book, then back up at the object of his affection.

Geno frowned, looking from Reaper to the book as well, until it dawned on him just what the implications were. A bright red blush spread over his cheekbones, and he fought the urge to throw the book clear across the room. Reaper clenched his jaw in an attempt to keep in the howling laughter bubbling up in his ribcage.

“STOP.” Geno growled out, only making the situation worse for Reaper. “Reaper, I’m warning you-“

And then, Reaper couldn’t hold it in any longer.

He burst into a hearty chuckle, having to set his coffee cup down so he wouldn’t spill it all over himself.

“It’s not even that funny.” Geno tossed the book on the table before crossing his arms, making up his mind to never open it again.

“Have you learned anything from it?” Reaper asked when he had calmed down enough to form a sentence.

“I’ve learned you’re a dick.”

“I asked if you learned anything from the _book_ , Geno.” Reaper let out one last laugh.

“Unless you’re planning on lifting my nurse’s dress up and fucking me in the elevator, then no, I haven’t.” Geno frowned.

“Oh.” Reaper said, trying not to laugh again and upset his date any further. “So, you like to be on bottom?”

Geno’s eye widened and if he could have mustered it, he would have let out a screech. His entire face was covered in his crimson dust.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Reaper grinned, glad to have finally thrown him off. “Personally, I like both.”

Geno finally closed his mouth.

“I didn’t need to know that.” He muttered, picking up his latte and taking a drink, if nothing more than to do something with himself.

“I found out your preference. Thought it was only fair to tell you mine.” Reaper grinned and shrugged, sitting back on the couch. He extended his arm on the back, sneaking behind Geno, but not touching him, even if it almost killed him. He had wanted this for a long time, and now he had Geno right where he wanted him. But he still couldn’t make a move. He had to wait for the right time and talking about sex positions was _not_ the right time.

Geno rolled his eye and pouted, really _pouted,_ and sat back, his spine coming into contact with Reaper’s arm. He seemed surprised and jerked forward again before seeming to decide he didn’t mind touching the pathologist’s limb and sat back again, settling into his new position.

Reaper felt like his soul was going to soar out of his body and straight to hell. (There was no way his soul would be allowed into heaven, if there was one. Honestly, he hoped it was more of an Ancient Greece set up.) He tried his best not to move his arm, savoring the moment.

“So…” Geno looked back to him. “You have a guinea pig.”

“Yep. Her name’s Life.” Reaper reached into his pocket for his. “Do you wanna see her?”

“Uh…” Geno looked at the other’s face. He didn’t really think he had a choice. “Sure.”

Reaper grinned and pulled up his folder with all the pictures of his little pet and handed the phone over. Geno began to scroll through them.

“She’s… cute.” He mentioned, still swiping through the album. “Wait… is she dressed as that fairy from Peter Pan?”

“Tinkerbell? Yeah. It was her Halloween costume last year.” Reaper grinned. Geno blinked.

“Do you usually dress up your guinea pig for Halloween?” He asked, watching how the doctor seemed to light up the more he talked about his pet. Reaper laughed.

“No, I’m not that crazy of a guinea pig parent… I just threw a party last year for the morgue staff that didn’t work and thought it would be neat if Life had a costume. We matched.” Reaper smiled.

“You were… Peter Pan?” Geno asked, running his eye light over Reaper’s body. He was having a hard time picturing it.

Reaper let out a chuckle.

“No… I was Captain Hook.” He laughed again, shaking his head. “I don’t have the figure for Peter Pan.”

“Oh… Okay…” Geno looked back to the device but realized he had reached the end. He handed the phone back. “Why a guinea pig?”

“My brother had one and after… when he was gone, I had to take care of it.” Reaper grinned and crossed one leg over the other, getting comfortable. “Fell in love with the little thing.”

“You said something about… your brother?” Geno asked.

“Yeah… My brother.” Reaper thought about changing the topic, if only to save himself from being the object of Geno’s pity. “My brother died when we were kids. Accident. It’s why I wanted to become a doctor.”

“…You’re a forensic pathologist.” Geno tilted his head.

“Sometimes, dreams don’t work out the way you want them to.”

 

* * *

 

Ink was on his way home after an unfortunate Saturday spent mostly away from his beloved.

They hadn’t planned on spending the day apart, but the Gasters had shown up at the gallery to settle their bill.  Gaster’s card wasn’t working in the online portal and he refused to let Aster use his card, even though they shared a bank account.

_“It’s the principal!” Gaster had announced as Ink typed the card manually into the system to try it from his end._

_“Dearest, why don’t you just swipe my card? The effect would be the same.” Aster sighed. He knew it was of no use, as they had been having this fight for a week._

_When the card finally went through, the two of them sighed in relief._

_“Oh, Ink?” Gaster perked up._

_“Yeah?” Ink asked with a smile._

_“We need a dog sitter for Saturday. Do you think you would be able to?”_

And that was the story of how he was watching a giant, white, fluffy dog who really didn’t need supervision, almost all of Saturday. Lucy was a simply dog: she would sleep in her room (after seeing the size of her, he realized why the two older skeletons had decided to just giver her her own room in the house), then she would wake up and grab a toy, bringing it to Ink or running around the suite squeaking it in her jaws, head held high. He had to feed her once in the morning, and then once in the evening before he left, along with two thirty-minute walks during the day. He was compensated for his hard work, of course, but it hadn’t really felt like work. The most work he did was trying to get out from under her when she laid on him.

But now, he was on his way home, across town to finally be with Error once more. The Gasters had pictures of themselves in frames on almost every conceivable surface: one of them at a beautiful beach, a hike in the mountains, in front of a university’s logo as Aster accepted an award. It was heartwarming and made Ink hope that he and Error would be like that at their age, but it also seemed lonely. No kids, save the ones Gaster was performing for. And the way the two of them had been looking at the children… It made Ink think. Had they wanted kids? What had stopped them? Adoption was a real thing.

But most importantly, it made him wonder about Error and him.

Did he want kids someday? Did Error want kids someday? It was a natural progression for a couple, wasn’t it? Get married, have kids, grow old, die.

Well… It wasn’t something he needed to think about just yet.

“Honey, I’m home!” Ink announced as he opened their apartment door. The smell of cleaning chemicals greeted him, a nice lemony scent. Even if the studio was a shithole, Error tried to keep it nice.

“Welcome back.” Error said, fiddling with a box while he sat on the couch. Ink shut the door and went over to his boyfriend.

“What’s that?” He asked curiously, setting his bag down.

“Bag.” Error gently reminded. Ink blinked.

“Oh yeah.” He picked up his bag again and put it on one of the hooks next to the front door before taking his place next to his lover. “Okay, so, what’s that?” He asked again.

“Your pets.” Error grumbled, setting the contents out on the coffee table. There was a thin, glass enclosure, sand, and a few miscellaneous items.

“Doesn’t look alive to me.” Ink laughed.

“Shut up. They’re in the freezer.”

“Aw, you got me roadkill! How thoughtful!”

“Shut up, ass. Go get them out if you want to see them.” Error began pouring the sand into the small tank.

Ink went to the freezer and peeked in. There wasn’t much – they needed to go grocery shopping – but he did find a packet labelled, “Ants.”

“Error, sweetie, why are there ants in our freezer?” He asked, coming back to the couch where Error was digging tunnels in the sand with a small straw.

“That’s what the instructions said to do.” Error huffed and finally sat back. “Pour them in.”

Ink grinned and opened the little packet of insects before leaning down and slowly pouring the contents into their new home. The two of them sat back and watched as the ants languidly woke up, beginning to stumble around drunkenly, like most creatures would after fifteen minutes stuck in a freezer.

“Aww, look at them, Error!” Ink cooed as he leaned in, watching them. “My little babies…”

“Don’t call them your babies. They’re ants.” Error crossed his arms, watching Ink with a slight smile on his face. They might die in only a few weeks, but the effect they were having on Ink was worth it.

“Okay, fine.” Ink continued to watch them as they began to burrow. “I’ll give my children real names. There’s Jim, Tim, Kim, Dim, Sum, Su, Shi-“

“You’re just naming them food now.” Error sighed. “You won’t even remember who’s who.”

“Then I can just name them again!” Ink laughed. “Why don’t you name one?”

“Abomination One. Abomination Two. Abomination Three.”

“I think Abomination Two is actually Tim. Choose another.”

“That one.”

“That’s Kim.”

“You don’t know. You’re just messing with me now.”

“Do you want kids?”

Error stopped, looking over to his lover with a frown.

“Where’d that come from?” He asked.

“If we ever have kids, you can’t name them Abomination One and Abomination Two.” Ink tilted his head slightly.

“They’re kids, not ants. I wouldn’t name my kid Abomination One.” Error sighed.

“So, you want kids someday?” Ink followed up on his question.

“I don’t know… I haven’t thought that far ahead.” Error shrugged. “Do you?”

“Haven’t thought that far ahead.” Ink agreed with a grin and a shrug, before looking back to the ant farm. “Until then we have Jim, Tim, Kim, Dim, Sum, Su, Shi, Abomination One, Abomination Two, Abomination Three-“

“I’m honestly proud of you for remembering all of those.”

“…I can’t remember them anymore.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to apologize for Nightmare's poem. I don't write poetry. I don't know the elements of a good poem. 
> 
> Ant farm idea given to me by someone special. <3
> 
> Thank you for reading and supporting me!


	23. Utterly Smitten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chara and Blue go on a date, and Error has to ask Fresh an important question.

Blue was excited for the day to end. 

Well, not really  _ end _ . Just for five o’clock to hit so he could see Chara again. 

They had been seeing each other on and off for the last few weeks. A date here, a dinner there. And Blue couldn’t get enough of her. She was crass and confident, and probably had every single trait that he didn’t. She hated having doors held open for her, yet she let him do it anyway. There were times he just knew she was teasing him; there was a certain smile she had when she did something to deliberately make him uncomfortable. There was also a thing she did where she would come up behind him, wrap her arms around his neck, and gently rest her cheek against his bare skull, so close he could smell her floral perfume. 

He was utterly smitten. 

Today, they were meeting at a mall to go window shopping. It was something small they could do together, without going out on a full blown date. Blue wanted to see her every single day, but knew that wasn’t possible. Their schedules never lined up so cleanly that they were able to do that. He settled for these stolen evenings, knowing they would share lively conversation over food court Chinese. 

He sat on a bench next to the fountain they had agreed to meet at. He smiled happily at the passerby, checking his watch every few minutes, counting down the seconds until the human arrived. If everything went well tonight, he might even be able to call her  _ his  _ human. He just needed his plan to fall into place. 

“Blue~!” 

His head whipped up immediately, spotting the brunette coming towards him, waving slightly. He bounced out of his seat, going to meet her halfway. They exchanged a hug, Blue getting a hint of that intoxicating perfume before pulling back once again. 

“How was your day?” He asked as he cheerfully slipped her hand into his. 

“Oh, you know. Sold a few paintings, had to remind Ink to write his names on forms when he was finished… And to take his lunch out of the microwave. Five times.” Chara sighed, but laughed all the same. Blue joined in. 

“You two are almost like brother and sister.” He commented. 

“An unfortunate pair… At least my real brother chose me and I wasn’t stuck with him.” Chara smiled gently, reaching up and touching the gold locket she wore. 

“Asriel, right?” Blue asked as they walked. Chara nodded. 

“Firstborn of the Dreemurrs. Chooser of the Chara. I was like an abandoned kitten he brought home one day.” Chara gently unclasped her locket and popped it open, showing it to Blue. 

“Aw, you guys were so cute…” Blue studied the picture. “You still are, of course.” 

Chara laughed and patted his skull gently. 

“You’re sweet.” She said as she closed the locket once more and returned it to its place around her neck. 

“What’s Asriel doing now?” He asked, beginning to swing their hands, earning a smile from his date.  

“He lives overseas… With his family.” Chara’s face darkened, though she tried not to show it. 

“Oh… So his wife and kids?” Blue smiled, trying to keep the atmosphere light. He failed. 

She nodded and they walked in silence for a moment before Chara brightened and pulled him over towards store where you could “build” your own stuffed animal. They had a variety, though their most famous ones were teddy bears. 

“Look, Blue!” She giggled happily, pulling him around the store. “Awww, he reminds me of you.” 

She picked up the display example of a small puppy-dog type plush. 

“I remind you of a dog?” Blue asked, laughing softly. 

“You’re sweet, and kind, and you like helping people. So… a doggy.” She gently rubbed the dog’s muzzle into his cheek before placing it back where it belonged. 

“Hmm…” Blue scanned the display before picking up one of the plushes. “This one reminds me of you.” 

“That’s a T-Rex!” Chara cried. 

“A pretty T-Rex.” Blue noted, before putting it back. “Actually, this one reminds me of you.” 

He gingerly picked up a white teddy bear with eyelashes. Chara laughed. 

“I think I like being a dinosaur better.” Chara shook her head with a smile. “Are you hungry? I’m kind of starving.” 

“Yeah!” He agreed happily before they left and went to find the food court. 

Blue had been right; they were going to eat food court Chinese. But, he had a plan to enact, and he had found the perfect way to do so. He just needed to slip away for an instance. 

They sat their trays down on one of the tables. After he had pulled out Chara’s chair for her and pushed her back in, he took a step back and announced: 

“I have to go to the restroom. I’ll be right back.” 

“Okay. I’ll be here.” Chara smiled at him. 

* * *

 

Chara sat at the table, eating her chow mein, all the while thinking Blue must have stood her up. She knew that wasn’t possible; it wasn’t like him at all. But he had been gone so long that she was worried. She pulled out her phone and sent a text message. And then another. No response to either. 

She began to fidget in her seat. This was odd behavior for him. What if he had been kidnapped? He was so tiny and adorable that it was plausible. She began to mentally beat herself up that she wasn’t there to prevent his obvious skele-napping. She thought he was fine. He worked out all the time. Maybe he didn’t know self defense tactics. Did he even carry pepper spray? 

She stood suddenly, ready to begin running a lap around the mall to try and find him, or any clues to his disappearance. 

“Chara? What are you doing?” 

She whipped around, Blue standing down the aisle of tables and chairs with his hands behind his back. 

“Me? What am  _ I _ doing? What have  _ you _ been doing?! I’ve been worried sick. I thought you were kidnapped…” She felt the tension leave her shoulders. “I’m so relieved…” 

“Kidnapped?” Blue had to hold in his laughter. Now was no time to laugh. He had a question to ask. 

“Yes! Skele-napped! What were you doing for so long?” Chara asked, frowning softly as him. Blue let out a half-sputtered laugh before shaking his head and steeling himself. 

“I have something to ask you, Chara.” He said, trying to force his face into seriousness. 

“You didn’t answer my question.” Chara crossed her arms. When it was certain Blue wasn’t going to fold first, she relented with a sigh. “Okay, what?” 

Blue got down on one knee. 

“I know we haven’t known each other long, but I feel like this is right.” Blue began, watching Chara’s face twist in horror. He elected to ignore that and continued. 

“I would like to ask you if you’d be my girlfriend?” He pulled a stuff dog out from behind him, one he had sneaked away to make. It was even dressed in a little blue scarf. 

Chara blinked, then her face relaxed and she grinned widely. 

“Yes!” She hugged Blue as he stood. There were whispers and and a few looks from the other patrons, but the two took little notice. “Why the little doggie?” 

Blue smiled and gently placed it in her arms. 

“So you always have a ‘me’ to hug. When I can’t be with you.” Blue grinned. Chara’s face reddened and she pulled the stuffed animal close, almost covering her face.

“It even smells like you.” She mumbled into its fur. Blue grinned, obviously happy with the reaction he got. 

“Yeah… You can pick smells back there… That’s what took me so long.” He rubbed the back of his skull awkwardly. “There were so many things to choose from.” 

“I love it.” Chara muttered, not loosening her grip on puppy. 

Chara never let the dog out of her arms the rest of the night. Even when she had to choose between holding Blue’s hand and ice cream, she simply had to suck it up and eat her ice cream in one hand and have the dog tucked under her arm. 

On the train home, she set Little Blue (as she had named him) in her lap and gently ran her fingers over his faux fur, stroking him as if he were a real dog. She even gently kissed his nose, not caring that she was getting stares from the other passengers. She couldn’t contain the smile that graced her lips the entire night. 

She was utterly smitten. 

 

* * *

Killer hadn’t been in the best of moods lately. Not since Nightmare had started to “volunteer” at the cat cafe he loved so much. (Was it really just the cafe, or was it the barista? Killer couldn’t be sure. Nightmare did love cats to the point of obsession… Just like his brother.) It was getting really close to finals, so they were both stressed. The only problem was…

Killer was hardly having sex. 

It was hard to relax with so much stress built up inside of him. He wanted to take it out on Nightmare (or take it out  _ in  _ Nightmare?) but the smaller skeleton almost always denied his advances. Nightmare was too tired or too busy, or some other asinine excuse. And when they did have sex, Nightmare took more control, mostly climbing on top of him and riding him until he couldn’t think straight. It would have been a lovely development had he not known that Nightmare was practicing for  _ him.  _

It may not have been the healthiest thing for him to do, but Killer decided to pay the cafe a visit. He wanted… No,  _ needed  _ to see what this guy was like that Nightmare seemed so infatuated with. He had seen Cross, who looked just like the idiot Killer believed him to be. Who wouldn’t be attracted to Nightmare? Only a fool and a scoundrel. He had been secondhand offended for Nightmare when the guy openly rejected him in favor of his brother, but now that he had tasted his forbidden fruit, he wasn’t going to let anyone take him away, or worse, break his heart again. 

So, he came to see what kind of guy this Ccino person was. 

He opened the door and stepped inside the cafe, his first impression being that there were much too many cats. After looking around, taking it all in, he moved to the counter, where the man of the hour was standing behind it, mixing up caffeinated concoctions. 

“Welcome!” Ccino greeted him with a bright smile. A cat that vaguely reminded him of Nightmare hopped onto the counter as well, purring and rubbing himself all over the barista. Killer wanted to throw it across the room, but that wasn’t fair to the cat. He had done nothing wrong. “What would you like?” 

“A caramel latte?” Killer tried, not exactly a coffee connoisseur nor a coffee snob. 

“Coming right up.” Ccino said cheerfully, taking the college student’s card and running it through the machine. Killer had the opportunity to add a tip, but out of principal he refused. 

He took a seat, pulling a textbook out of his backpack to pretend like he was studying. Once Ccino had delivered his latte and went back to work, Killer peered at him over the top of his book. He could see no obvious qualities that would make Ccino a superior romantic partner to himself. If anything, Ccino was an extremely soft person, much like a marshmallow, who wouldn’t even be able to protect Nightmare should anything go awry. And someone needed to protect him, because the kid was small, and a creative type, thus needing someone strong to fight on his behalf. 

And that cat. 

The one that reminded him of Nightmare. 

It kept  _ clinging  _ to the coffee shop owner, and worst of all, Ccino seemed to love it. 

Killer ground his teeth together, trying to keep his cool. This wasn’t healthy for him. He shouldn’t have come. All he saw was someone completely contrary to him gaining the affection of not only the real Nightmare, but even a cat Nightmare as well. He stood abruptly and gathered his things, storming out of the cafe. 

He needed an emergency shrink session. 

 

* * *

 

Luckily, Killer’s therapist was always ready to squeeze him in. 

He worked at the university’s health center as part of his doctoral work, and had come to find Killer especially intriguing but also very worrying. For, you see, Killer was a bit of a special case.

Killer’s soul existed outside of his ribcage, and when he was completely fine, happy as a clam (or at least as neural as a starfish), his soul took the natural shape of a heart. When he began to feel angry, depressed, or any kind of negative emotion, his soul began to morph into the shape of a target. No one wanted his soul to become a target. It spelled disaster for anyone close to him, physically and metaphorically. 

And that’s why Color would always make sure he had time for Killer. 

He watched as Killer took the seat across from him in his office, already seeing his soul begin to flicker back and forth from a heart to a target. Not a good sign. 

“What brings you in today, Killer?” Color asked calmly, the unheated flames changing between colors soothingly from the crack in his skull.    

“I’m mad.” Killer stated the obvious. 

“What are you mad about?” Color provoked, trying to get the undergraduate student to open up. It always took some time to get Killer to open up to him every session. The first time they met, Killer had been so against telling Color anything that the psychologist in training was sure he wouldn’t be back for his scheduled appointment. 

“Nightmare.” Killer ground out. 

“Your roommate.” Color stated. “What about him?” 

“We’re having sex, right?” Killer reminded, to which the other nodded. “He’s starting using someone else’s name. Not Cross, but someone else.” 

“Do you know this person?” Color asked calmly. Killer shook his head. “And that makes you angry?” 

“Yes! Not just that I don’t know him, but it’s not me.” Killer sighed. Color noted that his soul’s shape was becoming less erratic. “I went to see him today. The new guy.” 

“Ahh.” Color nodded knowingly. “You called me right after you saw him, didn’t you?” 

Killer nodded again. 

“What’d you think about him?” 

“He was… soft. And old. Everything I’m not.” Killer sighed, leaning back as if the frustration was slowly exiting him like a deflating balloon animal. 

“Does he seem like Cross?” Color asked. 

“No… Except being older than him.” Killer’s frown deepened. 

“I think you’re upset about something more.” Color leaned forward. Killer eyed him warily, and he saw his soul flicker between shapes for a sharp second. He knew he hit the nail on the head. 

“I don’t know what to do to get him to like me.” Killer huffed. “I don’t think I’m his type.” 

“Does he know you want more than a sexual relationship with him?” 

Killer frowned, his soul sticking to a target shape for a few seconds before flicking back to a heart.

“I’ll take that as a ‘no.’” Color sighed softly. “How is he going to think of you as anything more than a roommate he sometimes has sex with unless you tell him you’d like to be more?” 

“I don’t want to change what we have.” Killer looked down at his shoes. 

“You weren’t so afraid to change your relationship with him to a sexual one. Why is this different?” Color asked patiently. 

“It’s… It’s…” Killer began, then stopped, his brows coming together. “It’s scarier.” 

“Do you feel better now you’ve admitted it?” Color smiled softly at him. 

“I guess so…” Killer sighed and crossed his arms. 

“I think you should try and make your intentions clear. Ask him on a date.” Color watched him, trying not to break eye contact while still monitoring his soul. 

“...” Killer sat in silence for a moment, mulling the suggestion over in his head. It wasn’t a bad recommendation, but it was a terrifying one. What if they lost what they had? What if Nightmare never wanted to see him again? But… was he happy with his current situation? The obvious answer was no. 

“You don’t have to go home tonight and get down on one knee, but think about it, okay?” Color smiled, then looked down at his watch. “Looks like our time’s up today, but we’ll keep our appointment for two weeks from now. And again, call if you need to come in.” 

Killer nodded, said his departing words, and went home, where he sat on the sofa once more and waited while thinking about Color’s advice. If Nightmare rejected him, he could at least get over him. He still wasn’t sure what his decision would be when Nightmare walked him. 

“Hey.” Nightmare said as he placed his bag down next to the door and began shimmying out of his cardigan. 

“Hey.” Killer returned the greeting. He swallowed, then asked, “Tense?” 

Nightmare looked over at him coolly, then responded, 

“Yeah.” 

Killer decided to try something different that night. Instead of going straight to his bed, he pinned Nightmare to the wall, knowing the smaller skeleton wouldn’t reject because they wouldn’t dirty his own bed or the couch. Killer found their position opened Nightmare to even more pleasure and his moans were wispy and light. He started to close his eyes in pleasure, but Killer grabbed his chin and gently pulled him back. 

“Don’t close your eyes.” He commanded in a growl, continuing his thrusts. 

Nightmare clenched his jaw, but not once did his purple eye lights leave Killer’s. Killer felt his partner’s fingers dig into his shoulders, and for a brief second he wondered if Nightmare was going to leave permanent marks on the bone. He could feel Nightmare clenching around him, his moans becoming mute, until he let out a raucous symphony of, 

“Killer! Killer! Killer!” With each of his partner’s final thrusts. 

Killer couldn’t control himself. He finished, pulling Nightmare down onto him for the finale, causing him to wail in his ear. They stayed there for a brief moment, Killer feeling Nightmare’s hot pants on his neck. He didn’t want to let go. He never wanted to let this moment slip past him. He felt Nightmare pull back from him, just enough so he could look into Killer’s eyes. 

Killer saw a mix of emotions in those pretty lavender eyes: confusion, curiosity, the softness of a body satisfied. Then Nightmare did the unthinkable. He leaned forward, pressing a kiss to Killer’s mouth, the first time they had ever shared one. He continued to keep his eyes on Killer’s, half-lidded and calculating. Somehow, they began to twist their tongues together in a frenzy, Killer ignoring the screams of his arms and legs as he continued to press Nightmare against the wall, trapping him. But Nightmare didn’t seem to want to be free. 

Killer felt himself beginning to burn once more, and when Nightmare felt it, he pulled away. 

“Again.” Nightmare stated. 

“Again?” Killer gasped. 

“Again.” A command this time. 

“Where?” Killer was breathing heavily. 

“Couch.” 

“Wh-what?” 

“That’s as far as you can make it without putting me down.” Nightmare frowned, then smirked, adjusting his hips ever so slightly. “Unless you think you can make it.” 

Killer could have doubled over, but managed to hold himself together just long enough to all but throw Nightmare down onto the couch. 

He received an encore of the beautiful melody he heard just a few minutes prior, Nightmare eagerly calling his name, pleading for more. Harder, faster, right there, KILLER! 

When they were done, Nightmare allowed his lover to pull him into his arms and hold him close, almost possessively. 

“Why?” Killer asked, gently rubbing one of Nightmare’s scapulae. 

“Why what?” Nightmare sighed. 

“It was the first time you said my name… And the first time we kissed… Why?” 

Nightmare turned his head slightly, giving him a curious look. 

“It was the first time you asked it from me.” 

 

* * *

 

It was a busy time for Error, now that it was getting close to finals and graduation. 

And he couldn’t care less. 

He was already set to graduate top of his class (not that it meant a damn thing in graduate school), he had an excellent job lined up, he had a wonderful boyfriend to go home to every day and he just… Wasn’t feeling up to continue to care about his actual classes. 

Speaking of Ink, he was spending a bit more time away from home. Every so often some of his clients, who he called the Gasters, asked him to babysit their dog. Now, Error was no expert in pets, but he was pretty sure most dogs didn’t need to be babysat. Checked up on, maybe, but not full out babysat. Unless they destroyed things, but Ink said the dog didn’t have a history of chewing up shoes or going all out on couch cushions. 

Not only did they get Ink to babysit their dog, but they also seemed to stop by the art gallery right around lunch some days, out of the blue and, “Oh look at the time! Ink, would you join us for lunch? There’s this place around the corner…” 

Ink never saw what was going on, but Error did. 

The two old skeletons were trying to get closer to Ink. 

Error wasn’t jealous, nor was he particularly worried about this development. He sensed nothing malicious in their intent, from the way Ink spoke about them. Error got the sense of two father hens, seeing an extremely helpless baby chick, and trying to make sure he didn’t end up forgetting how to peck worms out of the ground and die. 

Error understood the sentiment. 

But Ink always remembered to eat. Error could count on him for that. 

Today, Error left school early (because he couldn’t sit for one more minute listening to the old crone without wanting to drill a screw straight through his eye socket) and decided to pay his brother a visit. It was going to be the most self deprecating visit he hoped to ever have with either of them, but especially with Fresh, of all people. 

See, the thing was, he needed a new suit. 

After Ink had thrown up, well,  _ ink  _ onto the only suit he owned, his first reaction had been to yell and scold him, but one look at his boyfriend’s face told him he was just as horrified as he was. 

_ Ink stared in shock and horror, his mouth still open and looking like he could begin to tremble at any second.  _

_ “Error! Oh my stars, I’m so sorry!” He surged forward, trying to mop the ink off Error’s clothing with his own. “That hasn’t happened in so long… Ugh, Error, I’m really sorry…”  _

_ It was the only time thus far that Error had seen him almost cry.  _

_ He let out a breath before gripping Ink’s shoulders and gently pushing him back so he could look in his eyes.  _

_ “Ink.” He quietly commanded. Ink slowly looked up at him, his eyes mismatched eye lights two teardrops. “It’s okay.”  _

_ “N-no… It’s not… It’s your only suit. And I ruined it.” Ink moved to try and begin cleaning his boyfriend up again.  _

_ “Ink.” Error repeated. “There’s nothing you can do for it. There’s nothing anyone can do for it. So, let’s focus on something more important right now. How are YOU feeling?”  _

_ Ink pulled back slightly once more.  _

_ “Sick.” He looked to the ground.  _

_ “Your clothes are ruined too.” Error fussed, beginning to wipe the ink that dribbled from Ink’s chin with his cuff. “You need to get cleaned up.”  _

_ “We both do.” Ink looked back to Error’s clothing. He was going to have to take it off once more, but this time it was decidedly not sexy.  _

_ “Okay, let’s do it together.” Error suggested, taking his hand and leading him towards the bathroom. Ink brightened at the suggestion, but not quite “stars-in-eyes” bright.  _

_ Instead of turning on the shower, Error began to draw a bath, letting the water warm up before putting the stopper in. He turned back to his partner and began to unbutton Ink’s shirt.  _

_ “I was hoping the first time we’d bathe together would be more sexy…” Ink sighed just as Error pushed his shirt off his shoulders.  _

_ “You mean throwing up on me wasn’t the sexiest thing you’ve ever done?” Error asked with a smirk, shaking off his jacket and working on his own shirt buttons. Ink turned the to the sink and rinsed his mouth out, trying to get rid of the taste.  _

_ “No…” Ink shook his head gently before turning back to his boyfriend, who was stepping out of his pants. He wanted to be turned on, he really did. But his stomach was still uneasy, and he was still embarrassed. He slid off his own pants and sat down in the bathtub, Error filling in behind him. An unfortunate side effect of being shorter than your boyfriend. You had to be the small spoon when space was tight.  _

_ Error gently ran his hands over Ink’s naked bones, rubbing away the dirt and sweat he had built up over the day. As the suds began to pile up, and the aroma of musk surrounded them, he began to feel better. He let Error take care of him, sharing a strange form of intimacy with his lover. Eventually, he began to smile again, feeling a bit better for ruining Error’s sexy suit.  _

_ When Error was done, Ink turned around, straddling him and beginning to give him the same lavish treatment he had been pampered with.  _

_ “Ink! You got soap in my mouth.” Error spat out the offending chemicals as Ink just laughed it off.  _

_ “Now you know how I feel when I throw up ink. It doesn’t exactly taste like… ice cream. Or even bile.” Ink began to knead Error’s shoulders the best he could from his position. The other skeleton gave off a satisfied grunt at his ministrations, so he continued.  _

_ “That bad, huh?” Error asked, arching his back slightly.  _

_ When they were finished, Error got Ink a lemon-lime soda from the fridge that Ink nursed the rest of the night as they laid in bed together, neither really hungry.  _

_ “How often does that happen?” Error asked softly, running his knuckles down Ink’s cheek in a soothing motion, trying to get him to relax enough to go to sleep.  _

_ “It hasn’t happened since I was ten…” Ink laughed softly. “It happens when I get… overwhelmed. If I feel a lot- excitement, happiness, sadness- it just happens. I didn’t think it was going to come back… But… I guess I got freaked out by the thought of you going somewhere without me, then you weren’t, and you’re going to be making a lot of money… It was a lot to take in.”  _

_ Error let out a laugh.  _

_ “Yeah, I guess it was.” He gently pressed a kiss to Ink’s forehead. “I couldn’t leave you, either.” _

_ “I know…” Ink gently curled into him. “I wouldn’t stay here.”  _

_ “You wouldn’t?” Error whispered.  _

_ “No… My home’s with you, not a place.”  _

_ Error kissed him then, and experienced what it was like to have the lingering taste of ink on his tongues.  _

Now, Error was on his way to visit Fresh, before Ink caught wind of it, to ask for money to replace his suit. Ink had offered time and time again to buy him a new one on his own, but Error always brushed him off. He knew Ink didn’t make a lot of money (neither of them did, for that matter) and he knew Ink was still squirreling away every spare cent he had to try and buy them out of their apartments. Or at least, one of the apartments. He was still set on the idea of them being able to move into their own, better apartment when he had enough. Away from the washers that quit halfway through a cycle, or the cockroaches that had started sneaking into their apartment again. 

It wasn’t a bad dream to have, really. And a practical one at that. 

Error  _ would  _ enjoy an apartment that wasn’t just one big room. 

He pressed the buzzer on the apartment building’s side and waited. It was an uptown building, clean and sleek. The buzzer even had a camera so the tenants could see exactly who was calling on them. It was something apartment buildings who didn’t want their charges getting murdered had. It was safe. And clean. Somewhere Ink should be. 

“Hey, brah.” Came the response from the speaker. 

“Hey.” Error huffed. This wasn’t exactly easy for him. 

“Wanna come in?” Fresh continued. Error sighed. 

“You know that’s what I want. I called you thirty minutes ago.” 

“Aight, aight.” 

He heard a buzz and the lock clicking from the door. He pushed his way in, getting a strange look from a few of the renters. Error sighed and headed for the elevator. Fresh had given him pretty simple instructions to get to his apartment. But he couldn’t keep his eyes from wandering in envy. Not so much at his brother, but more at the couple that walked out of the elevator. He walked in and closed the doors, even though he saw someone headed right for him. 

Fresh ended up meeting him at the elevator. 

“Hey, hey, hey.” He greeted and moved to give Error a hug, but he stopped him before he could even raise his arms. 

“Only one hug. Remember?” Error corrected. Fresh straightened himself out. 

“Only one hug.” Fresh repeated with a grin. “Come on. I’ll show ya to ma crib.” 

When they walked in, Error took in the scent of new carpet and paint. Fresh had lived here for about six months now and the smells were still lingering. It was truly amazing.

“What brings ya here?” Fresh asked, not offering Error the full tour. He didn’t really want Error finding his guest bedroom bare. 

“I have something to ask you.” Error said, sitting down on the couch opposite of his little brother. 

“Yeah? Ya know ya can ask me anything.” Fresh grinned, trying to read his brother. He was a bit of a genius when it came to reading people. ...And then manipulating them into getting what he wanted. Probably the reason he didn’t have any friends. 

Error looked to him, took in a deep breath, then sighed it out before gathering the courage to ask his question. 

“So… My suit… It uh… Got ruined.” Error began the explanation. Fresh didn’t really need to know the intimate details of how it was spoiled. “And uh… I need one for work and…” 

“Okay.” 

“I didn’t finish.” Error frowned. 

“I know. But ya ain’t gotta ask it. Ya comin’ here is hard enough. I’m not gonna make ya say it.” Fresh grinned at him. 

Error’s body relaxed and he leaned back in his seat, settling in. 

“Thanks.” Was all he said and they sat in silence for a moment. Error let his eyes pass over the entire apartment, taking it in. He decided he had a second question to ask. “Fresh. What does this place cost?” 

“Ya know it’s not proper to ask someone that.” Fresh just continued to grin. When they were younger, Error tried to literally wipe it off his face. It didn’t work, obviously, so Error forced himself to stand it. 

“I’m interested.” Error gruffed, crossing his arms. 

“For ya or for both of ya?” The corner’s of Fresh’s mouth twitched, and he willed his magic not to let his excitement show on his glasses. 

“Both of us. It wouldn’t be for a while… I know there has to be a waitlist for a place like this. And we’d have to wait till our leases were up and-” 

“Don’t ya got savings?” Fresh asked, leaning forward. 

“Yeah but that’s for-” 

“Fo’ somethin’ big. Isn’t movin’ into a real apartment ‘somethin’ big’?” 

Error’s gut twisted. He knew what Fresh was doing, but he honestly didn’t want to stop it. He said nothing, simply scowling at his brother, allowing him to continue his snake enchantment. 

“And I ain’t got ya a graduation present yet. Ya’re so hard to shop fo’. Ya can consider anything ya need to make up the difference ya gift.” Fresh paused, watching for Error’s reaction. 

But Error was a seasoned veteran. He kept his face frozen in his pensive scowl. 

“What about the waitlist?” He asked. 

“If a resident refers them, it’s faster.” 

“Pet policy?” 

“Nah to pets. Totally un-rad.” 

“Ants?”

This threw Fresh a little off his game. 

“Ants?” He asked. 

“I got Ink an ant farm.” Error explained briefly. They couldn’t leave the ant farm behind. Ink had gotten much too attached to it, and the ants lasted longer than Error ever thought they would. His boyfriend was like a little kid with them, even if Error had to keep reminding him of their names. 

“They should be aight.” Fresh nodded. 

“...” Now Error truly had to consider Fresh’s offer. If it was just for him, he’d yell ‘NO’ and storm out of the place. But it wasn’t just for him. It was for Ink. Someone much more important than himself. 

“Deal.”

* * *

 

Ink came home to find his boyfriend sprawled on the couch, phone in hand as he played a game on it. Ink had been seeing this sight quite often these days. He knew Error was just ready for it all to be over, and it would be, soon. 

“This is a surprise. You’re home before me.” Ink chided as he closed the door and placed his items in their proper places. Error grumbled something in return, obviously irritated with his game. 

“For you.” Error growled and held something out to the artist just as he sat down on the couch next to him. Ink took it and looked at it curiously. 

“This is an apartment brochure.” Ink stifled his laughter. “Why would I want this? Ever?” 

“It’s where Fresh lives.” Error explained, looking up as he failed the level he was on. 

“Ah. That makes it a great gift, then.” Ink teased before looking back to it. “Fancy. He can afford this?” 

“Yeah. Surprisingly.” Error peered over the top of the brochure. “In-unit laundry, a swimming pool on the roof, of all places, a gym facility…” He began listing off the wonderful amenities. 

“No pets, though.” Error shook his head. “But I asked and ants are fine.” 

“Shouldn’t they use bug spray? I wouldn’t want to live somewhere ants were allowed.” Ink grimaced slightly. 

“Not just any ants. These ants have to be in a glass enclosure, and their names have to be Tim, Jim, Kim, Dim, Sum, Su, Shi…” 

Error watched as the confusion melted off of Ink’s face and understanding beginning to dawn on him. 

“E-Error?” Ink asked quietly. “Wh-why would our ants live there?” He wanted Error to say it out loud. 

Error grinned. 

“We can’t expect our  _ babies  _ to live there on their own.” He grabbed a manila folder off the coffee table and opened it. “You see, for the low, low price of your signature on this lease, you too can live with the ants. And me, of course.” 

Ink felt his stomach churning once more. 

“E-Error, I’m gonna-!” He quickly slapped his hands over his mouth, trying to hold it down. 

Error quickly tossed the folder back onto the coffee table and pulled Ink into his arms, pressing his head into his chest. He would rather get the ink on him than anything else in the immediate vicinity. 

But Ink was able to keep himself together with a few deep breaths and the comforting scent of his boyfriend. After a few minutes he pulled himself back. 

“But… how?” Ink asked. 

“Does it matter?” Error asked. Ink nodded, and Error laughed. “Okay, okay.” 

He quickly explained what had happened between him and Fresh and the ensuing trip to the management office. Not only was Fresh able to help them bypass the waitlist, he was able to manipulate the poor monster into getting them one faster, so long as Error returned the paperwork fairly quickly. 

“So we’re moving.” Ink stated. Error nodded. 

“A whole two weeks after I graduate.” Error noted. 

Ink looked around the apartment. 

“We should collect some of those cockroaches. They brought us together.” He said, finally looking back at his partner. Error frowned. 

“You can catch them. With your bare hands.” He spat. 

“What? No way!” Ink shook his head. “Okay, maybe no cockroaches.” 

“No cockroaches definitely.” Error finished. 

“Only us.” 

“Did you just compare us to cockroaches?” 

“A little bit.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes I have ideas on what to say to end the chapter. This is not one of those times. 
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	24. First Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ccino has a problem, and Ink realizes he's upset with Error.

Ccino decidedly had a problem. 

Most problems were easily solvable for him. One of the machines not working? Call a technician. One of the cats throwing up? Call the rescue sponsor and have them take it to the vet. Feeling the weight of inevitably dying alone with only cats surrounding you to witness it? Crawl back in bed and try to ignore it, only to have thoughts of someone you might want to spend your life with encroach on your self loathing. 

And there was the problem. 

Ccino had accepted his fate a long time ago. He was never going to find that “special someone” and he was never going to be in a long-lasting, happy relationship that would last a lifetime. Things like that didn’t happen for him. He didn’t even have time to keep the cafe running and date. And at his age, it was hard to meet new people… New people who weren’t happy in their relationship. 

He was satiated with his lot in life. 

Then Nightmare appeared. 

He didn’t really feel anything at first. Just another customer who was interested in drinking coffee near cats. Nightmare slowly became a regular, sitting at one table in particular and always wanting the resident cat, Sansy. Ccino had gotten into the habit of marching off to find the lazy thing as soon as Nightmare walked in the door. Then, Nightmare wanted to help out. He knew it was just because he didn’t want to pay the entrance fee, since he was a poet himself and a college student, so Ccino let him. Nightmare worked hard at his duties, and was starting to get the hang of things well enough that he didn’t have to focus so hard on the task at hand. 

Nightmare was even starting to be able to make drinks. Ccino would often turn around to a mug of hot cocoa, piled high with marshmallows waiting for him. He assumed Nightmare was practicing, but hot chocolate wasn’t so intricate that he needed to continue to practice even after he had made it so many times. Then came the little touches Nightmare added, such as different colored or shaped marshmallows, or specially colored sprinkles to give it a flare. 

The barista thought it was just because Nightmare wanted to do something for his “boss.” A simple nicety. But, Ccino could see Nightmare watching him from wherever he was when Ccino discovered his gift, and he could see Nightmare scowl when Ccino smiled at him in thanks. It was always as if Nightmare could see through his fake smiles, even if he truly did appreciate the gestures. 

Ccino believed Nightmare really  _ could  _ see through his mask. 

And that’s why he was testing Ccino to see if he could ever get him to show a genuine smile. 

He achieved it, once. 

One night Ccino turned around to find another hot chocolate, this one piled with marshmallow fluff in the shape of a cat and a face drawn on it in cinnamon. His eyes widened and he had grinned, turning to Nightmare excitedly. 

_ “This is great!” He exclaimed, watching Nightmare blink rapidly at him, his jaw slightly slack. Then, he smiled. The little skeleton actually smiled.  _

That’s when Ccino realized his problem. 

A problem that he could easily scoop into his arms with pretty lilac eyes. 

A problem that was at least ten years his junior. 

After his realization, he had sweat profusely for days as if his body was trying to break a bad fever. He had to carry around a handkerchief and blame his perspiration on the warmer weather, or that the air conditioner just wasn’t up to snuff. 

He spent his spare minutes thinking about his help, unsure of exactly when the feelings started. He didn’t believe that lightning could simply strike when and where it so wanted. Nightmare’s smile had been the trigger for him. You don’t just become smitten with a smile. You become smitten with a person. The smile is just a nice bonus. He still hadn’t found the answer when Nightmare visited again. 

“Hey, Ccino.” Nightmare said as he came behind the counter and started making himself something. 

It was a routine they had started; if Nightmare came in he was welcome to come behind the counter and make his own drink (and pay for it, of course), before taking up residence at one of the tables. Today, Ccino went through extra care to avoid bumping into him. His body hadn’t quite forced that fever out yet. 

“Hey, Night.” Ccino stumbled a bit, but quickly righted himself. Nightmare cocked a brow at him. 

“Since when do you called me ‘Night’?” He asked. 

“O-oh? You don’t like it? I can go back…” Ccino hadn’t thought about it. He just hadn’t wanted to speak for so long. 

“...It’s fine.” Nightmare turned back to his mug and poured himself some coffee. He put a few bills on the counter and watched Ccino flit around behind the counter nervously. “Are you okay?” 

“I’m perfectly normal.” Ccino said quickly. 

“You’re really sweaty.” Nightmare looked him up and down. 

“The air conditioner hasn’t been working so great these past few days.” Ccino laughed and waved it off. 

“I can feel it blowing on my head.” Nightmare frowned. “Something’s wrong. You’re shaking, and your face is flushed.” 

“Nothing’s wrong!” Ccino chirped, trying to smile. “J-just…” 

He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. Darkness had creeped into the corners of his eyes suddenly, and his legs felt weak. He felt like he was going pass out. 

Nightmare quickly caught him. 

“Stars...” Nightmare whispered under his breath. “You live upstairs, right?” 

“Y-yeah…” Ccino quickly looked around the shop. There were still customers. “B-But-” 

Nightmare sighed. 

“I’ll take care of it. Just let me get you upstairs first.” He pulled Ccino’s arm around his shoulder. Ccino had to lean down on him, but it worked out perfectly. Almost like using a crutch. They were able to get up the stairs and Nightmare set him down on the couch. 

“Just lay down.” He gently commanded, looking down at Ccino with such a deep look of concern that Ccino faltered. No one had looked at him that way in a very long time. 

“Are you okay on your own?” Ccino asked, trying to settle down. Sansy - who had come from stars know where - hopping onto his lap. 

“I’ll take care of it.” Nightmare repeated before standing and disappearing down the stairs. 

Ccino watched him leave before turning back to his cat, gently stroking his soft fur. How had it gotten this bad? Could infatuation do this to a person? Or was he truly sick? He at least admitted to himself that he didn’t mind Nightmare taking care of him… He closed his eyes, wishing the best of luck to the college student downstairs. He’d have a lot to take on, running the store on his own. 

He almost drifted off when he heard feet stomping up the stairs. 

“Nightmare?” He asked hoarsely before looking towards the clock. He had only closed his eyes for ten minutes. “What are you doing back?” 

“I closed the shop.” Nightmare said simply, beginning to move towards him. Ccino shot up. 

“Closed?! I have to stay open… I have to get back to work!” He cried, moving to get up before Nightmare pushed him back down. 

“No. You’re going to rest. And I’m going to make sure you do.” The poet frowned softly. Ccino shook his head. 

“No… You don’t understand. I can’t close. The money-” 

“You make enough extra money on Fridays to cover closing for one afternoon.” Nightmare continued to hold him down, knowing the barista was bound to try and get up again. “You’re probably sick with exhaustion.” 

Ccino frowned and laid back once more, finally giving in. He  _ was  _ exhausted. He’d barely slept lately, overthinking every nuance of his current predicament. If he were actively chasing Nightmare, he might have been happy to get him in his apartment. Under the circumstances, he was less than pleased. 

“Where’s your bedroom?” Nightmare asked as he headed in one direction. 

“Why?!” Ccino exclaimed. Nightmare turned and frowned at him. 

“I was going to get you a pillow.” He said flatly. Ccino laughed apologetically. 

“O-okay… First door on the left.” Ccino prayed he hadn’t left anything embarrassing out. 

Nightmare came back with one of his bed pillows, not seeming phased, so Ccino took that as a good sign. He sat up as the student placed it gently behind him, then settled back on to it. 

“No blanket until you cool off.” Nightmare instructed. “What have you eaten today?” 

“...” Ccino had to think. He gave his companion a shy smile. “Nothing.” 

Nightmare sighed dramatically. 

“And what have you drank today?” He continued. 

Ccino looked sheepish again. 

“Coffee.” 

“Only?” 

“...and hot chocolate.” 

Another sigh from the younger. 

“Okay.” Nightmare said simply before going into the kitchen. He came back with a glass of water, a wet washcloth, and an almost spoiled banana. He offered the food and drink to Ccino before laying the washcloth on the cat lover’s head. “Eat it. You need something.” 

Ccino quietly followed directions, watching as Nightmare sat in the chair next to the sofa. Nightmare watched him right back, crossing his legs and arms, giving Ccino a silent:  _ you will finish those or so help me _ command. When he was done, he set the peel and the glass down on the coffee table. 

“Thanks… Sorry you have to take care of me.” Ccino gave him an apologetic smile. Nightmare frowned. 

“I don’t mind.” He said simply. 

“Still… It must have messed up your afternoon.” Ccino kept his smile up. 

“It messed up your afternoon too.” Nightmare shrugged. 

“You can go home if you want… I promise to stay here.” 

“I don’t have anywhere else to be.” 

“I wouldn’t want to take up more of your time.” 

“I was planning on spending a couple of hours here anyway.” 

“I’m fine now. You don’t have to watch over me.” 

“Just let someone help you for once.” Nightmare all but growled, staring Ccino down with a scowl. The barista faltered. 

“I… I don’t know what you mean.” Ccino tried to feign ignorance, though he was very aware of what Nightmare meant. 

“You’re alone. You’re always alone. You could hire someone to help out here, but you don’t. You would rather run yourself into the ground than let someone help. This place is a tourist spot, for star’s sake. You use that excuse to remain alone.” Nightmare’s tone was even, gentle, yet scolding. Ccino grimaced. 

“I’m not alone.” Ccino smiled and laughed slightly. “I have you, right?” 

Nightmare sighed. 

“And you still keep me at a distance. You won’t hire me, even if you can see that together we’d raise profits as a team.” He frowned. 

Something in Ccino shifted. 

“You’re no different.” He said gently, with a smile. “I never see you with anyone.” 

Nightmare stared at him steadily for a brief moment. 

“Because I choose to come here alone.” He said softly. “But I’m working on letting people in. The only reason I asked if I could help out was because I wanted to get to know  _ you.” _

Ccino blinked, and for once, his smile faltered. 

“Why would you want to know someone like me?” He asked in a whisper. Their eyes lingered on each other’s before Nightmare answered. 

“We’re alike.” He said quietly. 

“We’re alike?” Ccino asked. 

“When I was going through a hard time, I came here… I watched you. You smile when you don’t mean it, and you keep working no matter what… But most importantly, we both kind of naturally turn other people off.” He looked away. 

“We turn people off?” Ccino’s eyebrows came together. 

“I think it’s different with me… But with you, you’re so… sad that people pick up on it. Yet, you still smiled.” Nightmare finally looked away, feeling a blush creeping onto his cheeks. 

Ccino laughed softly. 

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He agreed. 

“I still want to get to know you.” Nightmare perked up once more. “More than what I know.” 

“You want to spend time with an old guy?” Ccino tried to smile. Nightmare frowned at him. 

“I want to spend time with Ccino, no matter his age.” He crossed his arms again. Now it was Ccino’s turn to blush. 

“You don’t want to spend time with people your age?” He asked. Nightmare sighed loudly. 

“Why are you so fixated on age? It doesn’t matter. We’re both adults.” Nightmare tried not to roll his eyes. 

Ccino laughed - a genuine one. 

“Okay. We can hang out.” 

“Not hang out.” Nightmare shook his head, soul beating quickly. 

“Now you don’t want to hang out?” Ccino frowned again. 

“No. I want to go out.” Nightmare huffed, and after realizing Ccino still wouldn’t understand, quickly added, “On a date..”

“A date?!” Ccino almost jumped off the couch again, but Nightmare quickly hopped up and pushed him back down. 

“A date.” Nightmare frowned down at him. “And don’t take me holding you down into consideration. If you get up too quickly you’re going to really pass out.” 

“I…” Ccino’s face became completely flushed. “I… You… I…” He wanted to crawl inside himself and pretend this never happened. 

Nightmare was too young for him. He had his whole life ahead of him and Ccino was static, stuck at a coffee shop that held more cats than patrons. There was someone else better suited for Nightmare than him. Just about anyone else. But, looking up into those eyes that had so recently began haunting his dreams, he heard a little whisper in the back of his head, telling him: 

_ What if? _

“O-okay.” He squeaked. 

“Okay?” Nightmare asked. 

“Okay.” Ccino said more confidently this time. Then, he was graced with that smile again as Nightmare released him once more and going back to his own seat. 

Sansy wheezed, as if saying: 

_ “Finally.” _

* * *

 

The feeling hadn’t started on its own. It had taken a week for it to pickle inside him, Ink providing the vinegar unconsciously. He was uncharacteristically irritable, even at his work and worse, at home with Error. He could tell his boyfriend sensed it, yet he said nothing. It was weighing him down, and he couldn’t put a finger on what was causing it, and thus, he had no idea how to fix it.  

It wasn’t until he had a conversation with Chara he realized what it was. 

“Are you getting excited to move?” She asked lightheartedly, having been in good spirits ever since her official coupling with Blue. 

“No.” Ink stated flatly. His boss stopped what she was doing to get a better look at him. 

“You look like someone killed your cat then fed it to you. What’s wrong?” She crossed her arms. 

“I don’t know!” He cried, throwing his arms in the air. “I don’t know.” 

“Okay… you’re not excited to move, so start there. Why aren’t you excited?” 

Ink frowned. 

Why wasn’t he excited? 

He screwed his face in thought, eye lights changing as quickly as he passed from idea to idea. Which meant to say, not very fast at all. 

“Come on, Ink. Is it the apartment? You don’t like it?” She snapped her fingers, bringing him back to the present. 

“I like it.” His frown deepened. 

“You don’t want to hire movers?” 

“We’re not hiring movers. We don’t have a lot of stuff to move.” He sighed. They were hardly taking any furniture at all, planning on just buying new items when they could spare the change. 

“Then what the fuck, Ink?” Chara snapped him back once again. 

“What?” 

“Your boyfriend gets you an amazing apartment, in a great part of town, and you’re not excited to move. So, what the fuck?” She scowled at him. 

It hit him so fast both of both of his eye lights landed on exclamation marks. 

“I’m pissed he did it.” 

“Excuse me? You’re pissed he did that for you?” Chara scoffed. 

“ _ I  _ was supposed to get the apartment. I was  _ saving  _ for it. And then he just goes and does it with the help of his brother. Just like that.” Ink snapped. “I was working on it, and it’s like he just forgot that.” 

“He probably did.” Chara agreed. “But he also probably saw the opportunity to get you out of that shit hole a lot faster so he took it.” 

“I didn’t ask him to!” Ink exclaimed. Chara frowned. 

“You didn’t…” she sighed. “I think I see the problem.” 

“What’s the problem?” Ink asked, wanting any extra insight into his predicament. 

“You’re pissed he did something nice for you.” Chara said. Ink opened his mouth to interject, but she continued before he could. 

“Because it was something nice you were planning to do for him.” 

Ink frowned, sitting in silence, stewing in this new kernel of wisdom. Chara was right. He was mad at his boyfriend for doing something nice for him before he could do it for  _ him _ . He let out a frustrated cry. 

“He’s always the one doing nice things for me!” He growled. “This is the one thing I was going to do for him but he did it for me! What do I even bring to the relationship? Someone for him to pamper?!”

“Obviously you bring something or he’d have murdered you by now.” Chara rolled her eyes. 

“I never get him anything. I never do anything for him. I never take him out on dates. What. Do. I. Do?” Ink ground out. 

“I’m not a couples therapist, but that’s probably how he shows he cares. Have you heard of love languages?” 

Ink shook his head. She sighed. 

“It’s how a person shows people they love them. For example, I’m touch. I like to hug or hold hands…” she gently wrapped her arms around herself, mimicking the action. “If I had to guess, Error’s language is gift giving. He’s not good at… like, any of the others.” 

Ink simply tilted his head, waiting for her to continue. 

“How do you show him you love him?” She asked. 

Another pause to think. 

“Sex…?” He offered. Chara sighed again. 

“Okay, touch. But I’m sure Error’s not with you just for the sex. What do you do that he likes?” 

“He really likes when I’m on top and I-“ 

“No, no!” Chara cried, quickly shushing him. “I meant actions outside of sex! Like, does he like when you cook? Does he like spending time with you?” 

“He definitely doesn’t like when I cook alone.” Ink gently looked at the floor, still thinking. “He likes watching TV together, I think. He really likes it when I clean and remember to put my stuff up. Yeah.” He looked back to her. 

“All part of love languages. See, Ink? You show him you care in other ways. I’m sure he understands that.” She hoped Error understood that. 

Ink still frowned. Knowing that helped quell him for the time being, but there was still a storm brewing in him. He crossed his arms, furrowed his brows, and stayed in a sour mood the rest of the morning. When he had finally come up with a solution, he announced his intentions to Chara. 

“I’m going to need a long lunch today.” He demanded. 

“It’s coming out of your paycheck, but okay.” One look at his face and Chara knew there wasn’t much she could say to dissuade him from whatever he was going to do. 

She watched him storm out, hoping he wasn’t just going to start a fight with Error. 

She considered both of their personalities. 

Any “fight” they got into wouldn’t be like anything normal couples experienced. It wouldn’t get physical, no, but it would get messy. And by messy, she thought they were the types to throw things at each other. To sling insults along with lamps. When they had finally worn themselves out, they would just make up and laugh about how stupid they had been. 

Yeah, that sounded about right. 

Idiots.

 

* * *

 

Error was already home that evening, sprawled on the couch in sweats. If Ink hadn’t watched him get on his train that morning, he would have sworn Error had never even gone to school. 

“Hey, Ink.” Error greeted, not getting up from where he was. 

Ink said nothing, only took off his jacket and bag, setting them down in their places carefully. Then he turned on him, frowning. 

“I’m mad at you.” Ink stated flatly. 

“Oh? So you finally figured out why you’ve been in a piss ass mood all week?” Error didn’t look up from the TV, but he did grope around for the remote. After he paused whatever he was watching, he looked to Ink. “What, stars tell, are you mad at me for?” 

“You got us an apartment.” Ink’s eye lights changed to simple pin pricks. It unsettled his boyfriend, but Error tried to mask his discomfort. 

“You’re mad at me for getting us an apartment?” Error asked flatly. 

“I’m mad at you for doing something nice.” 

“You’re mad at me for doing something nice.” Error repeated through clenched teeth. 

“I’m mad at you for doing something nice that  _ I  _ was going to do.” Ink clarified. Error stared at him, but didn’t say anything, so the artist continued. 

“I was saving up for an apartment, and you just did it because you could. You didn’t even think about my feelings.” 

“I was  _ only  _ thinking about you.” Errors growled, hopping out of his seat. It seemed sacreligious to fight sitting down. 

“You didn’t even include me in the process.” Ink’s voice was flat and monotone, matching his eyes. 

“It literally just happened! You didn’t  _ have  _ to sign the lease. You could have said no.” Error crossed his arms, shrinking into himself. He could feel the anxiety beginning to creep up his spine, its fingers dragging over the bone, turning each one sour. 

Ink blinked, yet his eyes didn’t change. 

The anxiety began boiling into panic. 

“What do you want from me, Ink?!” He nearly yelled in frustration. “You want me to promise to  _ never  _ do something nice for you again?” 

“You misunderstand, Error. I’m not mad about it being nice. I’m mad that you knew I was saving, but you did it anyway. I never get to do anything nice for you. You’re always taking care of me.” Ink frowned. “I don’t need to be taken care of.” 

“I know that! Am I wrong for wanting to, though?” Error’s arms tightened around him, his vision beginning to fade. If this “fight” didn’t end soon, he was going to lose it. 

“I want to take care of you, too.” Ink still seemed calm, if unanimated. It was making Error feel even worse. He had no idea what Ink was thinking. Feeling. He didn’t like the look of his expression. 

It was… 

Ominous. 

He could see the error signs building up in his view. 

“Do you love me, Error?” Ink asked, not seeming to recognize that the situation was getting worse. Typical Ink. 

“The fuck kind of question is that?” Error ground out. “Yes!” 

“Then you’ll have to leave your boyfriend behind when you move.” 

Error lost his sight, then his consciousness. 

His first reboot since seeing the full extent of Fresh’s injuries. 

* * *

 

He awoke lying on the floor with his head placed gingerly in Ink’s lap, his (hopefully, still) boyfriend looking down at him, an uncharacteristic look of worry on his face, and thank the stars, his eye lights shifting between shapes again. They changed to exclamation points when he saw Error’s eyes open. 

“Error!” He cried, quickly folding over him into a hug. “I had no idea what to do! You just… quit working. What the hell was that?!” 

Error groaned, bones stiff from his panic attack. 

“Can you just… let go?” Error asked, feeling his body screaming for less contact. 

Ink did as he was told, pulling up once more. He still looked down at Error, concern written all over his face, as evidenced by the appearance of teardrops in his eyes every few cycles. 

Error rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache coming on. Thankfully, he had medicine in the bathroom for this very reason. 

_ Just in case it happened again.  _

“That was a reboot… When I get really anxious… it happens. I can usually calm myself down…” Error sighed, then swallowed. “Why are you still here?” 

“What do you mean ‘still’?” Ink’s concerned frown deepened. 

“Weren’t you breaking up with me?” Error cursed himself for how hoarse his voice sounded. 

Ink’s eyes widened and his mouth opened, as if Error had physically slapped him. 

“N-no!” He exclaimed. “I would never!”

He moved to bend over Error again, but remembered what happened before and pulled back. 

“You said I’d have to move without my boyfriend.” Error frowned. 

“I didn’t finish…” Ink sighed, rubbing the side of his skull. 

“Didn’t finish?” Error cocked a brow. He wouldn’t have minded getting off the floor, but he also really liked laying in Ink’s lap. 

Ink laughed and sighed. 

“I was building up to something!” Ink smiled, defeated. 

“To murder me?” 

“Murder you?” 

“That look you were giving me… if you weren’t breaking up with me, then you were about to murder me.” 

“That look? That’s my poker face!” Ink chuckled. “So I wouldn’t give anything away.” 

“It’s terrifying!” Error huffed. 

“Aw, really? No one’s told me that before.” Ink pouted ever so slightly. 

“They were too scared to.” Error slowly began to make a move to sit up. Ink (not so gently) guided him to lay back down. 

“You have to let me finish now.” He commanded. Error just gruffed and stayed where he was.

“I said, if you love me, then you’d have to leave your boyfriend behind.” Ink began fumbling in his pockets. “Because… uh, hang on…” 

When he finally found what he was looking for, he pulled it out so forcefully it shot out of his hands. The stars aligned, and he was able to recover it with minimal discomfort to his lover. 

“Because we needed the tiniest moving box first?” Error chided, eyes narrowing to study what Ink had in his hand. 

“No! Because…” Ink suddenly felt nervous. He had been so confident up until now. “B-because...” 

“Because…?” Error encouraged. 

“Because…” Ink willed himself to get his masterpiece of a line out. 

“Because. You. Should. Be. M-moving. With. Your. F-f-f….” 

“My… fucking idiot?” 

“NO! Well, yeah. But I meant fiancé!” Ink yelled so loudly he probably rocked the foundation of the apartment building, sending all the roaches scattering.  

Error’s eyes widened and he blinked. Several times. 

“A-are you…?” He couldn’t finish the question. 

Ink’s face was quickly overtaken in a bright rainbow blush as he realized he hadn’t even opened the box. 

“Y-Yeah!” He cried and popped the box open, showing a shining silver ring nestled in soft silk. 

“...” Error looked from the ring to his boyfriend several times before his eyes finally settled on the latter. 

“Your response to figuring out you’re mad at me, is to propose to me?” 

“You make it sound bad when you put it like that.” Ink laughed again. 

“You realize we’ve barely been together for two months, right?” 

“I didn’t think about it.” 

“You just thought of something you wanted and did it?”

“My thought process was more, ‘I gotta do it before he does.’” 

“Oh.” Error frowned. “I didn’t realize we were in a competition.” 

“I had to do this! I couldn’t let you do it to me again!” Ink huffed. “So?” 

“So what?” Error smirked slightly, teasing now. 

“So?! Yes or no?!” 

“I can’t say yes or no unless you ask the question.” 

“I asked!” 

“No, you just blabbered. There’s a difference.” 

“Fine.” Ink spat. He opened his mouth again, then immediately closed it. He did this several times, reminding Error of a goldfish, staring wide eyed and gasping for breath. 

“You can do it.” Error encouraged. 

“Will you marry me?” Ink asked finally. 

“We can’t get married for at least a year. We have to follow some social norms.” Error instructed.

“Okay.” Ink nodded happily. 

“We’ll have to save up for a decent wedding. Geno’ll kill me if it’s shit.” 

“Okay.” Another nod. 

A pause. 

“Does that mean yes?” Ink asked, perking up. Error sighed and lifted his left hand for Ink to slip the ring on.

“Yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next week's chapter may be late, for various reasons. Just a head's up! 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	25. A Killer Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An Intermission

Killer hadn’t been home for long before Nightmare got back that night. 

He had been taking something out of the microwave when the smaller skeleton opened the door and walked in, sighing and setting his things down. Killer’s first instinct was to ask if the other  was tense, but, this time he wasn’t trying to initiate sex. He was able to stop and correct himself and ask, 

“Long day?” 

Nightmare looked up at him, the weariness showing in his eyes. Killer frowned. The poet had told him he was going to the cafe that afternoon. What exactly happened? 

“Yeah…” Nightmare sat on the couch, sighing softly. He usually went to his room and took his shoes off, but today, he was just too exhausted. 

Killer’s frown grew and he went to sit next to him. He wasn’t going to jump to conclusions, so he decided to probe around the most likely scenario. 

“Studied too hard?” He asked, setting his not-so-frozen meal on the coffee table. Normally, Nightmare would get onto him about it, since it was still in the original container and not on a plate, but he didn’t. Killer caught his look of disdain, however, so he knew Nightmare wasn’t too lousy. 

“No… I didn’t study at all.” The smaller sighed. “Ccino almost passed out, so I took care of him.”

Killer frowned. 

“He’s that needy?” He wanted to jump up and storm straight to the cafe, giving the barista a stern talk about how to treat others, but Nightmare’s scoffing laugh stopped him. 

“He’s not needy at all. He kept telling me to leave…” Nightmare gently rubbed his eyes. “It’s all the cats. I had to take care of fifteen cats, Killer. Do you know what it’s like to take care of fifteen cats?” 

“No…” Killer sighed inwardly. He was glad Ccino seemed like a decent guy, even if his cat obsession wore his roommate out. It put his mind more at ease about Nightmare pursuing him. 

“Don’t find out.” Nightmare laid his head back on the couch. “And never let me get a cat. Never.” 

Killer thought for a moment. 

“Okay. If you got one you wouldn’t be able to stop.” He finally took a bite of his food. It was still much too hot for him to eat. 

“You know me too well.” Nightmare closed his eyes and Killer thought he had fallen asleep before he opened them again. “I asked him out.” 

Killer straightened and tensed, quickly swallowing, trying to pull his face into neutrality. 

“Yeah?” He asked quickly. “What he’d say?” 

“He said ‘yes.’” Nightmare smiled softly at him. 

Killer was happy for him. He had always only wanted for Nightmare to be happy. Every day he had known him, he just wanted Nightmare to smile. This wasn’t the first time he had seen Nightmare smile. No, he had done his job quite well over the years. He could even call himself Nightmare’s best friend. 

But something in him shifted. 

He didn’t want to give up his roommate. He didn’t want to give up what they had. He didn’t want to go back to the way things were. He wanted to keep Nightmare… 

He wanted to keep Nightmare in his life. 

He wanted… 

Nightmare. 

Killer didn’t feel it, but he knew his eye lights had gone out when he felt Nightmare shifting next to him. That’s when he noticed he couldn’t see. His breathing turned heavy and he could feel his soul becoming erratic. The last person he wanted it to turn on was sitting so close to him he could still feel his heat. 

Nightmare had seen it before, but this time, Killer wouldn’t be able to contain himself. 

“Killer, your eyes!” Nightmare cried and Killer could feel his roommate beginning to wipe the dark sludge that was leaking from his eye sockets off his face. 

“I…” Killer couldn’t say anything more. He couldn’t force any words out. Instead, he just waited for the inevitable. 

His soul was going to turn and he was going to do something he would regret for millenia to come. 

And Nightmare would hate him for just as long. 

He tried to steady his breathing, gasping like a fish. He would give anything, ANYTHING not to breakdown near Nightmare. Anything- 

His entire body stilled. 

Hands were gently cupping his soul, caressing it. Killer could still feel it shifting, but it had calmed down, slowing to a serene stir. Thumbs gently began circular motions, massaging the most vulnerable part of himself. He could feel himself lulling, but when the thought of losing the owner of those supple hands intruded again, he tensed and could feel another wave coming. He clenched his teeth, trying to hold it back. 

“Killer…” Nightmare coaxed softly. He kept moving his thumbs. “Kill…” 

“Nng…” Was all Killer could muster. 

“Kill…” A whisper. 

“Nigh…” Killer tried again. 

“Come back…” 

Killer wanted to. He so desperately wanted to but he couldn’t. He couldn’t get there. He couldn’t find Nightmare, even though he knew exactly where he was. He could feel another influx coming, complete with a new waterfall out both his eyes. It must have gotten on Nightmare. It must ruined the couch. Nightmare was going to be so mad-

“Shhh…” Nightmare instructed, still calm. “It’s okay. I’m here.” 

Killer’s breathing began to steady again. But Nightmare never took his hands away. 

“Kill…” Nightmare started again. “You’re safe.” 

Killer closed his eyes, even if it didn’t matter. Nightmare was here, now, but wouldn’t he leave? Wouldn’t he leave him once he fell in love? 

He knew his soul was beginning to shift again. He couldn’t help it. He didn’t want to lose Nightmare… He didn’t…

A mouth pressed itself tenderly to his soul, making him snap his eyes open and miraculously, his sight returned. He looked down, catching Nightmare as he pulled away from his chest, looking up at him with those eyes that haunted his dreams. 

“Kill…” Nightmare moved to touch his cheek, but stopped short, frowning at his dripping hand. He quickly dragged it down the front of his shirt, the white cloth soaking in the black liquid. Then, he reached forward again, this time letting his fingers touch Killer’s cheek. He smiled softly. 

“Welcome back.” 

* * *

 

Nightmare had cleaned Killer up, and helped him change into some pajamas before getting him in bed. 

“Sorry you have to take care of me too…” Killer said, turning on his side to watch his roommate flit around his bedroom, putting things away so Killer wouldn’t trip on them if he needed to get up during the night. Killer knew Nightmare was just trying to make an excuse to keep his eye on him. It’d be easier if he would just bring a chair in. 

“It’s nothing.” Nightmare grumbled, picking up an old pair of Killer’s underwear. “Why isn’t this in your dirty clothes hamper? It’s two feet away!” 

Killer laughed tiredly. 

“Thanks, mom.” 

Nightmare clicked his tongue and placed the clothing in the bin. 

“Killer…” He started softly. He didn’t want to upset him again, but he needed to know, and it would be better for them both to talk about it. “Are you… Are you upset I asked Ccino out?” 

Killer frowned. When he didn’t feel his soul stirring, he decided it was safe to continue. 

And finally time to take Color’s advice. 

“Yes.” Killer sighed. “I…” 

Nightmare could have finished for him, or said a snarky remark, but he decided to stay quiet, wanting to hear it from Killer. 

“I… like you.” Killer managed to get out, then frowned to himself. That wasn’t quite the word he was looking for. He shook his head. 

“No… Nightmare, I  _ love  _ you. I’ve loved you since I first met you… I… I don’t want to lose you… I want to be in your life… Even if we don’t have sex. Even if I’m just your frie-” 

Nightmare cut him short with a kiss, pressing Killer back into the pillows he had forced him to lay on. When Killer didn’t respond, Nightmare pulled away, looking down at him with a look Killer had never seen on the poet. It was a mixture of sad and concerned, longing and having. He gently placed his hand on Killer’s cheek. 

“I love you too.” He whispered, his face unchanging. 

“What?” Killer asked.

“I said, I love you.” Nightmare finally looked away. 

“But… why? How? ...During sex you…” Killer couldn’t quite understand. Nightmare looked back to him. 

“I… I’m sorry, Killer… I thought that’s what you wanted from me. I thought… You didn’t want to be too involved… I thought…” 

And then Killer saw something so rare, he had imagined it only happened once - when Nightmare was born. 

Tears welled up in Nightmare’s eyes and spilled over his cheeks. He didn’t take his eyes off Killer’s, however. He let the tears fall without even wiping his face. 

“I thought… you were okay with just sex… That’s how I tried to justify it to myself… You told me… You told me to use you. So, during sex I would close my eyes so I didn’t have to see you.” Nightmare ran the sleeve of his shirt over his face if only to prevent his tears from getting on Killer’s sheets. 

“You didn’t want to see me?” Killer asked breathlessly, a swirl of emotions rising inside him. Nightmare let out a bitter laugh. 

“I thought I might make a fool of myself if I focused on you. If you didn’t feel the same… Then I... “ Nightmare shook his head. “Then I’d lose you. Having you in my life, in anyway, was better than not at all.” 

Killer laughed softly. 

“I guess we’re both idiots.” He huffed, gently reaching forward and pulling Nightmare onto the bed, even against his protests. 

“My shoes…” Nightmare whined but Killer ignored it. 

“So proper… For me, just let it be.” Killer sighed as he pulled him into his arms, both unsure and certain. Yet, something still had to be addressed. 

“You like both of us, don’t you?” He asked, looking down at the smaller skeleton in his arms. Nightmare frowned and flushed, nodding slightly. 

“I… It’s something…” Nightmare began to squirm, not wanting to say it out loud just yet, but knew it was going to have to happen. “It’s not… normal.” 

“Would you have a problem with saying you liked guys?” Killer asked. Nightmare gritted his teeth. Sometimes he really did hate Killer. He was too observant, even if he acted like an idiot. 

“Of course not.” Nightmare frowned. 

“How is this different?” 

“It’s extremely different! People can understand giving yourself to one person, no matter the gender! They don’t…” 

“Okay… Then does it matter what they think?” 

“Of course! What if! What if I told… Told you…” Nightmare immediately quieted and seemed to fold in on himself. “What if I told you that? Would you even want to be with me?” 

Killer grinned. 

“You haven’t told me. So I don’t know what I’d say.” 

“Ugh!” Nightmare snapped. “So you want me to spell it out? Fine. I’m more comfortable in a polyamorous relationship than being monogamous.” 

“Would you change that? If I asked you to?” Killer asked quietly. 

“I can’t.” Nightmare’s frown deepened. 

“Good. I wouldn’t ask you to.” Killer smiled. “Just because we love each other doesn’t mean we belong to each other.” 

Nightmare frowned. Killer tried again. 

“I mean, we don’t have a monopoly on each other. I understand you. I don’t want you to be something you’re not. I’ve even researched poly relationships-” 

“That’s how far you’ve gone? Already?” Nightmare let out an exasperated laugh. “Can’t we just… talk about it tomorrow? It’s late.” 

“Okay… But we have something to discuss something else before.” 

“What?” Nightmare groaned. 

“Can I call you my boyfriend?” Killer grinned. Nightmare huffed again. 

“I guess.” His face colored a bit more and he looked away. If Killer’s body didn’t feel like lead after his panic attack, he would tried to eat the poet up. 

“Mm… That sounds nice…” Killer gently pressed his forehead to the top of Nightmare’s skull. “Say it again.” 

“‘I guess.’” Nightmare smirked. 

“Ass. You know what I want you to say.” 

“I said it once. That’s enough.” 

“One more time.” 

“No.” 

“I had a really crazy day. Just one more time, to lift my spirits.” 

“If you keep it up, I’ll never say it.” 

“Please?” 

“Fine! You’re my…  _ boyfriend _ .” 

Killer smiled and gently tipped Nightmare’s head up, kissing him delicately. 

“Stay? With me? Tonight?” He asked breathlessly, his final request of the night. 

“...I guess. Let me change.” Nightmare began moving off the bed, finally feeling better that his shoes were no longer on the comforter. 

Killer laid back as he waited for his  _ boyfriend  _ to get back. He almost fell asleep, but the movement of the mattress and arms wrapping around his chest jerked him back to reality. He felt Nightmare curl into him, pressing his head into the small of his back. 

“Goodnight.” Nightmare said softly. 

“Goodnight.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which I, much like Deadpool, must clean up the timeline. Because this just didn't fit the flow of the next chapter, but was necessary. 
> 
>  
> 
> ~~Are you guys excited about this development? I'm excited.~~


	26. Through The Grapevine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> News travels fast.

**Chara was the first to find out.**

Now, Error and Ink weren’t keeping their not-so-traditional engagement a secret. They had just simply not found the best way to announce it to the masses. Or to anyone, really. It had only been a night and half a morning between when Ink had popped the question and when Chara discovered the truth on her own. Or rather, Ink slipped and she figured it out. 

Ink had been in an overly happy mood, and not one that was particularly productive to a business. He was friendly with people, chatting with them, but he was wholly incompetent on when it mattered. He couldn’t sell a painting if his life depended on it. He was much too busy talking about anything but the painting, even if it wasn’t about Error. He couldn’t stop the incessant, incoherent blabber bubbling out of his mandible. 

Chara finally had to intervene, tugging on his collar and pulling him down the stairs into their breakroom. 

“Ink.” She turned on him once they were alone. 

“Yeah?” He asked, grinning and blinking, seeming to not read the irritation etched into her essence. 

“What are you doing up there?” She asked, a soft venom in her tone. 

“Helping customers! Funny, though, they haven’t bought anything today. I wonder if the moon is in one of its weird cycles… You know, like when it’s in-” 

“It’s you!” Chara cried. “You’re pushing them away! What’s gotten into you? It’s like you know what you’re supposed to do, but you don’t know how to get there. You talked about the Gasters’ dog like five times to one couple.” 

Ink grimaced. 

“That bad, huh?” He asked sheepishly. Chara nodded. 

“Yeah. It is. Take some time to yourself down here and see if you can focus. I’ll be upstairs.” She sighed and left Ink alone. 

He sat down at what was his desk, staring up at the ceiling. He couldn’t help but be a bit spacey. He was  _ engaged.  _ He was going to be  _ marrying Error  _ in a year. Just the thought made him sink into the chair like a roasted marshmallow slides onto a graham cracker. He dug his phone out of his phone and immediately opened his pictures, pulling up the most recent. 

It was of Error’s hand, nestled in his own, but with the sparkling ring on his finger. 

Ink sighed happily at the sight. It was weird. It was just a band of metal on a finger. But it was a symbol. That they had agreed to spend their lives together. No matter what happened, they would have each other. He hadn’t been thinking clearly when he had stormed out of work the day before, going straight to the jewelry shop and purchasing the ring. He didn’t even have to think about what kind of ring Error would want. He had known Error wouldn’t want anything flashy, and in fact, would prefer nothing at all if he had the choice. But he didn’t have a choice. Not this time. 

After Ink had slid the ring onto his finger, it was hard for him to take his eyes off Error’s hand. He would randomly reach out and catch his hand as he walked passed, rubbing his thumbs over the band. Error had finally gotten annoyed with him, snapping his hand away and accusing Ink of having a hand fetish. Ink was able to convince him to let him take a picture of his hand, however, and now he had something to look at to remind him of what they were. 

_ Fiancés.  _

Ink set his phone aside and held up his own left hand, squinting sadly at his naked ring finger. 

He wanted his own ring. To match his  _ fiance’s.  _ But, unfortunately, he had spent the last of any savings they had on Error’s ring. Which, he realized after bringing up the price of the ring to his partner, had been very much overpriced. Now, they couldn’t afford him a ring. Error promised once they settled in and saved for a while they could get him a ring. Ink really just needed to sell some paintings… 

“Ink?” Chara asked, standing in front of his desk. 

He jerked his hand back down and quickly sat up straight. 

“What-” He began, but saw he had left the photo up on his phone and she was staring down at it, her red eyes more intense than he had ever seen them. He quickly snapped the phone off the desk. 

“What is it?” He finished breathlessly. 

Chara looked back at him, her face in a bit of shock. She tried her best to smoothe her expression. 

“I came to ask if you felt better.” Chara ground out. “Are you okay?” 

“Y-yeah, never been better!” Ink chirped. 

“And why’s that?” Chara arched an eyebrow. 

“Why’s what?” He asked nervously. 

“How come you’ve never been better?” Chara began to lean in, her eyes narrowing. 

“Oh you know… Just had a really good night last night.” That was the truth, at least. 

“Even though you were really pissed at Error?” 

“I wasn’t pissed at Error. Not after buying the ri-” 

“The what, Ink?” Chara asked calmly. 

“After buying the right underwear.” He offered. 

“I saw the picture.” Chara noted. “Just tell me.” 

Ink paused, staring at her for a moment before finally uncoiling and spilling his guts. 

“I proposed to Error! And he said yes! He said we have to wait at least a year to actually get married, but he said yes, Chara!” Ink grinned. 

Chara sighed. 

“Well, it’s not like I wasn’t expecting something like this. You two are nuts. Congrats, anyway, Ink.” She laughed softly. “Feel better now that you’ve told someone?” 

Ink laughed as well. 

“Actually, yeah. I really do feel better.” Ink hopped up from his chair. “I think I can focus now. Thanks, Chara!” He went up the stairs, determined to sell more painting than ever. He needed to match Error, afterall. 

Chara watched him go before pulling out her own phone. 

“Blue?” She asked before he could say anything. 

“Yeah? What’s going on Chara?” He asked quickly. Her voice sounded a bit frantic, and he was worried. 

“Ink… Error…” Chara blinked. “They’re engaged!” 

**Blue was the second person to find out.**

 

* * *

 

Cross and Dream were enjoying lunch when their phones tinged almost simultaneously. 

**Cross and Dream were the third persons to find out.**

“Error-” Cross started. 

“Ink-” Dream spoke over him. 

“They’re engaged!” They finished together. 

They sat there, sandwiches in hand, silence building between them. They had nothing to say and everything to talk about. Cross was the first one to thread his thoughts into a coherent enough sentence. 

“Are you okay?” He asked. Dream paused, frowning softly at him. 

“He’s stupid, for getting engaged that quickly.” Dream noted. “But, oddly enough, I’m fine. I don’t feel anything.” 

Dream grinned. 

“I don’t feel anything!” He exclaimed, his grin widening. “I’m not upset! At all!” 

His eyes shifted into stars, and just when Cross thought he was used to them, too. 

Cross flinched at his boyfriend, but still grinning. 

“That’s great!” He exclaimed back in his quiet way. “I’m… really happy for Error, actually.” 

Dream laughed and smiled, blinking a few times so his eyes shifted back. 

“You should be. He’s your best friend. He’s also kind of stupid.” Dream shrugged innocently. 

“I don’t think so… About this, anyway. Maybe they’re soulmates.” Cross said thoughtfully, then added, “Very, very chaotic soulmates.” 

Dream laughed again. 

“They seem very… chaotic.” He noted and took a sip from his soda. “You think they’re going to have an engagement party?” 

Cross snorted. 

“No. We’ll be lucky if there’s even a wedding. The pace they’re going, I wouldn’t be surprised if they just went to city hall and got married there. Tomorrow.” Cross laughed again. But it got him curious. 

“What about you?” 

“What about me, what?” Dream asked. 

“What would your proposal look like?” Cross finished. “Or wedding? Or any of it?” 

Dream blushed. 

“Why are you asking?” He asked shyly. It was Cross’s turn to blush. 

“J-just curious…” Cross looked down, aware that he probably shouldn’t have asked. 

Dream smiled softly. 

“I don’t know, really.” He began. “I just want to be proposed to by someone I love… I do want a wedding, though. But I don’t have any details planned out.” 

“Oh.” Cross looked up. “So you want to be proposed to?” 

Dream’s blush spread. 

“I-I guess…” He laughed awkwardly. “But I guess it doesn’t matter.” 

Cross smiled gently. 

“Noted.” 

* * *

 

**Reaper was the fourth person to find out.**

He wasn’t really  _ supposed  _ to know that Geno’s brother’s friend’s boyfriend was on Undergram. And that he was constantly posting pictures. Not always about something important or useful for Reaper, but today something huge was posted. Something momentous. 

Something he could totally get in trouble with Geno if he even mentioned it. 

Dream has posted a simple picture of a napkin with, “Congratulations Ink & Error” written in a beautiful script. Reaper didn’t want to jump to conclusions about it. Geno mentioned Error and Ink were moving into a new apartment soon. But, surely, his friend already knew that. This wouldn’t be news. 

Error was going to graduate in only a few days. But if it was that, Ink wouldn’t be congratulated as well.

He looked at the caption. 

“Congrats on your engagement best friend!” 

Reaper had almost spit out his drink. 

This was big. Huge. Monumental. 

Geno needed to know. 

But if he told him, Geno would know he had a fake Undergram account. And that he was social media stalking Geno’s familial and social networks so far back as to find out this. He could try to lie about how he found it. He could always say he just happened to be going through the people who were recommended to him by the website’s algorithm… 

Geno was too smart for that. 

And if Reaper wanted another date with him, he couldn’t lie to him. 

Damn himself for being so good at social media stalking. 

Reaper decided to wait to tell Geno until Geno’s lunch. Every day they worked together, he would slip away during Geno’s lunch and spend time with him. They hadn’t really had time for a second date, since Geno had to play nice and switch shifts to make sure he was off for Error’s graduation. Reaper  _ had  _ been invited to the graduation party, though, so he guessed that was good for something. 

He headed up to the cafeteria, ready to break the news and potentially his face. 

Geno was already in line, and like a good person, Reaper simply stood next to him, effectively cutting in line. 

“Hey, cutie.” He winked at the almost-pediatrician. 

Geno sighed. 

“Why are you like this?” He asked, crossing his arms. 

“I’m just myself.” Reaper grinned. How was he going to approach the subject…? 

They moved up in line and Geno got a tray, beginning to put a few things on it. 

“So… Error’s dating that…” He started. 

“Ink.” Geno corrected. 

“Ink guy, right?” 

“Yeah… Why?” Geno barely looked up. 

“Have you heard anything about them, recently?” Reaper continued to prod. 

“They’re moving… But I told you that.” Geno finally looked up. “Why are you so interested?” 

“It’s just… I might have seen something on Undergram…” Reaper trailed off, trying to look anywhere but at Geno. 

“What did you see?” Geno leaned in, staring Reaper down while he held his card out to the cashier. 

“I saw…” Reaper began, then shook his head and took out his found, holding it out. “Just look at it.” 

Geno quickly took the phone and stared at the pictured. 

“E-Engaged?!” 

**Geno was the fifth person to find out.**

He quickly took his tray to one of the empty tables and sat down, Reaper taking the seat across from him. 

“Engaged?!” The resident repeated. “He’s engaged?! It’s been two months!” 

“I mean, you never really know what’s true on social media-” Reaper tried. 

“This is Dream. He wouldn’t post something like that unless it was true! Holy shit.” Geno continued staring at the phone. 

“Maybe you should call Error…” Reaper tried again. 

“Oh my stars. I’m going to kill him. Why would he do something as stupid as asking Ink to marry him after only two months? It’s not like him. It just isn’t.” Geno began to blabber, his eyes wide in disbelief. 

“What if he wasn’t the one to ask?” Reaper hypothesized. He had no idea, but if it wasn’t like his brother, was it more in character for the other part of the pair? 

“...” Geno stopped and thought, finally starting to eat his food. “I don’t know. I don’t know anything. He should have told me.” 

“You could always talk to him?” 

“Yeah. I’ll do that.” Geno stabbed a cherry tomato with his fork. “I need to calm down first.” 

Reaper nodded, a bit thankful that how he had seen Dream’s post without actually knowing the kid since Geno was too preoccupied with his brother’s engagement. 

“I need to get back…” Reaper stood, not really wanting to leave Geno, but knowing he needed to. “Let me know how it all goes.” 

“Yeah…” Geno was already typing away on his phone. 

Reaper turned and began walking away. 

“Reaper?” 

He turned back around. Geno didn’t even look up. 

“We’re going to talk about your social media stalking problem later.” 

* * *

 

Fresh had been carrying on his day as usual. Today wasn’t a photoshoot day, so he had mostly ran around the city, taking his own pictures for Undergram, meeting with sponsors, or doing some kind of charity work. 

He hadn’t been expecting Geno to call him in the middle of his shift. 

Luckily, Fresh had just gotten home. To the apartments where he would soon be living just down the hall from his brother. 

He was excited. 

“Geno?” He asked as he sat down on the couch, taking a relaxed position to talk to his oldest brother. 

“Hey, Fresh.” Geno sounded chipper and apprehensive. Which meant that he was trying not to let Fresh know he was anxious. Which meant he was about to try and let Fresh down easy. 

He couldn’t remember this happening since he was a kid. 

“What’s up?” Fresh tried to bait his brother. 

“Oh just on lunch break at work… What’re you doing?” Geno was obviously stalling. The social media star had no idea why in all of the universe, Geno would be hesitating on telling him something. They were all adults now. His feelings didn’t need to be spared. 

“I just got home.” Fresh smiled. Always smiled. He could wait for Geno to run his circles. 

“Oh. Good.” Geno seemed a bit relieved. “I didn’t know if you were with your friend or not.” 

“He’s not my friend.” Fresh reminded. “So, why did ya call me?” 

“Oh, right…” Geno fumbled a bit. “You see, I just got off the phone with Error and... “ 

When Geno didn’t continue, Fresh had to prompt. 

“And?” 

“And… Ink asked him to marry him.” Geno finished. Fresh’s smile fell. 

“And?” He repeated. 

“And Error said yes. He promised me they wouldn’t actually get married for a year…” Geno continued, but Fresh wasn’t listening. 

He stood suddenly and went to the empty bedroom just down the hall. He had been so excited. So.  _ Excited.  _

He was going to live just down the hall from his brother. The one he spent his childhood chasing affection for. The one he knew loved him, so fervently it could light up the night skies like Fourth of July fireworks. The brother who would do anything for him. The brother Fresh had just been reconnecting with. 

The one who was being stolen from him before he could even get back into his life. 

He couldn’t help himself. His empty eye socket burned with the jealousy of a thousand parasites, all crawling to get out.

“Fresh?” 

He snapped back to reality. 

“Yeah?” He tried to sound unfazed. 

“I gotta go now. I’ll talk to you soon about Error’s graduation. Love you.” 

“Love ya.”

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Fresh was the last to find out.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for no update last week! I was doing finals and stuff. 
> 
> I hope you don't mind an early update. And one that isn't proofread. 
> 
> Tomorrow's going to be busy. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	27. Graduation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Error graduates. Ccino reveals something personal.

Ink was sitting in the stands of the university’s coliseum, looking down at the metal chairs aligned in neat rows on the floor below. He couldn’t stop grinning. Today, Error was graduating. He was going to have a masters degree and be off to his new job the following week. Ink’s soul was swollen with pride, and he knew it was showing on his face. 

Error had complained that whole morning while he was getting ready for the ceremony in the afternoon. 

_ “I’d rather just stay home. It doesn’t even matter if I walk or not. I don’t care.” Error grumbled as Ink badly straightened his tie.  _

_ “It doesn’t matter what you want. Don’t take this from Geno.” Ink scorned lightly. He had actually paid the eldest brother a visit earlier in the week, before his haphazard proposal. He had dropped off Error’s graduation present after picking it up from Blue’s. He made Geno promise not to peek, because he wanted everyone to be surprised. Geno promised, and they actually ended up having a full conversation together.  _

_ It was nice. Talking with his future brother-in-law.  _

_ He’d always wanted siblings.  _

Now, sitting wedged between the two brothers, he felt a bit awkward. They knew of the proposal, Error had told him so, and it seemed like the air around them had changed. He knew it was a bit… it was a  _ really  _ quick engagement, but he hadn’t really thought of how it would affect his relationship with Error’s brothers. Geno seemed friendly, talking a bit too quickly whereas Fresh was barely speaking at all. 

Ink felt like he fucked up. 

Did it matter? What Error’s brothers thought?

Error didn’t seem to care. 

But Ink did. 

He cared. 

He wanted to be part of their family. 

He wanted to make a good impression. He hadn’t really meant to ruin any potential connection with his brothers-in-law. 

He hadn’t been thinking of that when he proposed, though. 

Well, he had time to work things out with the two of them. He tried to make himself feel better. 

“It’s starting!” Geno grinned and quickly grabbed onto his and Cross’s arms, who was sitting on the opposite side of him. 

Ink felt a rush hit his soul and he quickly turned back to the floor and the stage, eyes darting between all of the visible doors, wondering which his beloved was going to come out of. He was eager to see what Error looked like in a cap and gown, since he wouldn’t put it on for Ink. 

The music began to play. Ink felt Geno’s grip tighten on his arm. He would have to remind himself not to piss Geno off (more). That grip could shatter bones if he wasn’t careful. 

The graduates began filtering out of the doors, not walking in time with the music. The entire procession seemed a bit flimsy and taped together, with a few of the students even losing their way to their own seats. But Ink didn’t notice all of that. No, he only noticed his soulmate, walking cooly with the others, as if this was something he did every Friday afternoon. 

Ink, decidedly, did not like Error in a cap and gown. He much preferred the nice shirt and tie he had watched him pull on that morning. 

But it didn’t stop him from feeling giddy nonetheless. 

“Fresh!” He turned to his left. The tall skeleton’s glasses quickly flashed ‘!!!!’. “Look!” 

Ink pointed Error out of the crowd. Fresh quickly turned back around and followed Ink’s finger. His grin seemed to widen.

“Ya. There’s mah bruh!” Fresh exclaimed. He was still dressed in neon colors, but Geno had at least gotten him to wear something a bit more formal than a windbreaker and shorts. He still had his hat on, though. Geno wasn’t  _ that  _ convincing. 

As if sensing them, Error turned his head and looked at them, passing over each of them until his eyes met Ink’s. Then, he winked. 

Ink felt like Cupid had shot an arrow straight through his soul. But it was a poisonous arrow, for Ink felt he would surely die of happiness in no time. 

He felt Fresh tense next to him, bringing him back to earth. 

He still had to win over his future brothers, it seemed. 

Geno had pulled out his phone and was eagerly snapping pictures. Error grimaced at the sight and turned back around. 

“Why is he so grouchy?” Geno sighed and sat back, watching the rest of the precession. 

“We’ll get some pictures afterwards.” Ink promised. He would make Error at least take a picture with him. He knew he could convince him. 

They would, indeed, have to get better pictures after the ceremony. The university had professional photographers, taking pictures of the graduates as they walked towards the stage and then again as they accepted their degree from the dean. 

And in every single one of them, Ink could see Error was scowling.

He could hear Cross snickering, so it was even more obvious than the artist had originally thought. Geno was sighing loudly, showing just how displeased he was at the fact he wouldn’t even be able to order the professional photos. Fresh said nothing, simply watching and grinning. 

And then, the ceremony ended and graduates stood, tossing their caps into the air. Error only took his own off and made a throw-like gesture but kept his cap firmly in his grip. Then he one of the first to flee from the scene. 

“Gotta go!” Cross stood abruptly. The other three jumped up to join him. If they didn’t catch Error now, they’d never get those pictures. 

Ink, though the shortest, ended up being the first getting to Error outside of the coliseum. Determination worked wonders. 

He caught his fiance off guard, flinging himself into the grad’s arms. 

“Error!” He cried, barely being caught by his other half, who unfortunately had gotten all too used to Ink randomly launching himself at him. 

“Ink!” Error gasped in an annoyed tone. “You need to stop doing that. What if I don’t catch you next time?” 

“Aw, you’re worried about me.” Ink grinned. 

“I’m worried about  _ me. _ ” Error frowned. Ink straightened himself before tugging on the front of Error’s gown, pulling him down to his level. 

“Congratulations.” He said softly before kissing him. 

“Cute.” Cross called, just as Geno took a picture of the couple. 

“Funk off, Cross!” Error growled, pulling off his cap and hurling it at Cross, hitting him right between the eyes with one of the corners. 

“Ow! What the heck?!” Cross gently rubbed the spot. “What if you left a scar? Dream would be pissed.” 

“Are you suggesting Dream cares about your face?” Error asked. 

“Why else would he be with me?” Cross was still rubbing his very minor injury. 

“Good point.” Error nodded. 

Fresh took the opportunity to wrap an arm around Error’s shoulders and snap a selfie of him and his brother, who was looking disgruntled once more. 

“For the ‘gram.” He explained as Error moved away from him. 

“Oh! Me next!” Ink piped, pulling out his own phone. Geno, the most benevolent of the three, took it. 

“Okay, say cheese!” Geno called once Ink and Error had assumed a rather typical pose. Ink grinned, and by some miracle, Error found it in himself to attempt a smile. “Got it!” 

Ink stepped away and eagerly collected his phone, eyes turning to stars as he inspected the picture. 

“Aw, we look so good! This one’s going in a frame for sure.” Ink tilted his phone so Error could see. They would be just like the Gasters, he told himself, with pictures of them together in every nook and cranny of their home. 

“Okay!” Ink turned back to their companions. “Now it’s your turn! Fresh, let’s get one with just you first.” 

With that, they began doing the rounds of taking pictures with the man of the hour. 

One of Error with Fresh. 

One of Error with Geno. 

One of Error with Cross. 

One of Error shoving Cross while Cross howled with laughter. 

And finally, 

One of Error sandwiched between his two brothers. 

“Perfect!” Ink called when he was done snapping the photograph. 

“Wait.” Geno said. Ink blinked. “We have to get one with you in it too. You’re family now.” 

Ink paused. Error looked at him expectantly and yet, he still couldn’t bring himself to begin the march forward. Cross helped him with that. 

“I got it. No need to worry.” The student winked as he plucked Ink’s and Geno’s phones out of his hands. “Now go.” 

Ink hurried forward, taking his spot next to Error, tucked neatly into his side. 

Cross held up Geno’s phone first. 

“Okay… One, two, three!”

* * *

 

Chara showed up at Geno’s apartment at exactly the right time. 

She had spent the day at work, since Ink needed to off for Error’s graduation. She ended up closing early so she could spend a good portion of the afternoon making Error’s favorite pasta dish as her graduation present. 

Chara was getting the foil containers out of her taxi when the group was just walking up. 

“Chara!” Ink cried happily before going to her and taking some of the canvas bags out of the backseat. 

“Hey, Ink.” She gave him a tired smile before turning to Error, giving him a hug. “No cap and gown?” 

Error looked down at himself. 

“Oh, damn. Must have left the on the train.” He shrugged. 

“No, you didn’t.” Geno frowned, holding up the articles of clothing. “You tried to abandon them. We’re keeping these.” 

Error shrugged again. 

“Anyway, congratulations. Now help me get these in.” Chara thrust the packets of pasta into his arms. 

“Yes ma’am.” 

 

* * *

 

Once inside, Geno tried to force Error back into his cap and gown so he could take a picture of him with Chara with no luck. Chara successfully, and physically, forced Error back into his cap and gown. They took their picture in front of the small fireplace Geno’s apartment had, that he wasn’t even allowed to use because of building code restrictions.

After that was done, they were finally able to crowd around the small dining table and eat. 

“Wow, this is actually really good!” Ink gasped after swallowing his first bite of spaghetti. 

“What do you mean, ‘actually’?!” Chara hissed. 

“I dunno. I wasn’t expecting you to be an actual chef.” Ink shrugged. 

“I resent that…” Chara huffed. 

“Anyway, open my present.” Cross took a wrapped card out of his vest’s pocket and lobbed it across the table to his friend. It landed squarely in the graduate’s spaghetti. Error frowned at him. 

“Payback.” Cross shrugged. 

Error took the card out of the pile of noodles, shaking a few of them off the envelope before opening it. 

“This is a baby shower card.” He looked across the table once more. 

“It was the best one the dollar store had.” Cross half-heartedly apologized. Everyone at the table knew damn well it wasn’t the best the store had. 

Error sighed and grumbled something before opening the card. Nestled inside was a gift card to a box-store restaurant. The card itself read: 

“Congratulations ~~on your precious new daughter!~~ ”

With Cross’s pen scribbling out everything but “Congratulations.” 

Underneath was his signature, and surprisingly, Dream’s was there as well, with a ‘I tried’ as an apology for the card. Error tried not to show his surprise and gratitude and simply looked up at Cross. 

“Thanks. For the chain restaurant gift card.” He kept his face neutral. 

Cross understood all the same. 

“Don’t act like you’d actually  _ go  _ to a fancy restaurant.” Cross scoffed. 

“Oh, let me get my present!” Geno hopped out of his seat and went into the kitchen, coming back with a small, slim box wrapped with a bow. He set it next to Error. 

Error tenderly picked it up, untying the bow and opening the box. Inside was a silver watch with a black face and blue accents. 

“Wow… Thanks, Geno.” Error looked up and gave his brother a slight smile. 

“You might have to take it to get adjusted…” Geno apologized, because it wouldn’t be a gift without some kind of apology from him. 

“My turn!” Ink’s eyes turned to stars and he bounced out of his seat, going to collect his own present from the guest bedroom. 

As his hands gently wrapped around the package, his soul began beating frantically. Suddenly, his present didn’t seem like such a good idea. They were all here. They’d all see it. What if all three of them thought it was stupid? He should have just given it to Error when they were alone… 

He took a deep breath, steadying himself. He plastered his familiar grin on his face and walked back out, carrying the canvas that was wrapped delicately in paper. 

The entire table was looking at it curiously, even if Error’s own face remained impassive, Ink knew he was wondering just what in all of New Home City is could be.

“Congratulations!” Ink said again and handed his present off, not moving to retake his seat. He’d rather watch Error open it from here. 

“Thanks…” Error mumbled and began unwrapping it gently, as if he had sensed all of the time and effort and  _ care  _ Ink had put into it. 

When Error had pushed away the wrappings, a quiet fell over the room. 

Slowly, Error turned the painting away from himself to show the others. 

It was a portrait of the three brothers, Geno in the middle with his two younger siblings on either side. They were smiling. It wasn’t hyper-realistic, but it was Ink’s own style. He waited, trying to gauge their reactions, but everyone just seemed surprised. 

Geno recovered first. 

“Wow!” He exclaimed, quickly plucking the painting out of Error’s grasp to look at it more closely. “It’s so great! You painted this?” 

“Y-yeah…” Ink fumbled as he sat back down, a bit disappointed he hadn’t elicited the same reaction from his fiance. But Error was Error and couldn’t help-

Error gently turned his chin so that he was looking at him, then kissed him, a bit too roughly for a dining room table, then pulled back. 

“Thanks.” He said softly. Ink smiled. 

“You’re welcome.” Ink grinned, happening to glance over at Fresh at just the right second and caught a rare sight. 

Fresh wasn’t smiling, but he wasn’t necessarily frowning, either. In fact, Ink got the distinct feeling that he was confused, as if at war with himself. The ‘????’ reading on his glasses helped him form his hypothesis.

Then Fresh caught him looking and immediately switched back to his wide, toothy grin, as if nothing had happened. 

“Wow! This is actually really good!” Chara mocked as she took the painting. 

“Hey!” Ink protested. “Don’t be mean!” 

“You were mean first.” Chara noted, handing it back to Error, who put it aside so it wouldn’t get damaged. “But it really is fantastic. Maybe someday you can display a painting at the gallery.” 

“Really?! I’ll start on some now!” Ink grinned. 

“I said someday! Today is not someday!” 

“Aw, man…” 

 

* * *

 

On the way home, Error held onto the painting protectively while Ink made sure no one got too close to accidentally bump into him. Error’s glare kept most of the miscreants on the subway away from them, however, so Ink didn’t have to work too hard. 

When they got home, Error gingerly placed the painting down, propping it up on a bookshelf. Without saying anything, he pulled Ink close and began giving him small, purposeful kisses. Ink complied for the first few, then pulled away laughing. 

“What? Why are you being so lovey dovey all of the sudden?” Ink chided, still laughing as Error frowned down at him. 

“I can’t be lovey dovey?” Error asked, cocking a brow bone. 

“It’s weird.” Ink answered. 

“You shouldn’t give me an actual, thoughtful gift if you didn’t want me to be lovey dovey.” Error mused, only pulling Ink closer so their ribcages were pressing into each other. 

Ink felt Error’s intention and decided that he better stop laughing, or else he was going to ruin the moment for both of them. 

“So, you liked it?” He asked, looking up his fiance. 

Error craned his neck so he could look down at him properly. 

“A lot.” He said softly. 

“How much?” Ink prodded, just as one of Error’s hands began slithering under the hem of his shirt and onto his bare spine. 

“I’ll show you.” 

 

* * *

 

Later, after they were spent and lying naked in bed together, Error curled around him and his back pressed into Error’s chest, Ink grinned to himself, knowing he had made the right decision in asking Error to marry him. He wanted this. Forever. Even if he got looks from Error’s brothers, it didn’t matter. He had Error, and Error had him. 

“Error?” He perked up. He thought his fiance was asleep, but he felt him stir behind him. 

“Yeah?” 

“Love you.” 

A snort. 

“Love you too.”

“Error?” 

“What?” 

“I don’t think your brothers like me.” 

“They didn’t really like Chara either.” 

“That’s understandable.” 

“...” Error paused. “Just give them time. I think they’re getting used to the idea I’m getting married. You can’t blame them.” 

“I know but…” Ink frowned. “I want them to like me. Especially Fresh. He looks up to you so much…” 

“Fresh doesn’t like anyone outside of me, Geno, and mom. And mom barely makes the list. Good luck.” 

“Thanks!” 

“That was a joke. You’re not gonna get to him.” 

“We’ll see. I got to you, didn’t I?” 

“That’s because you’re so cute.” Error growled into the back of his neck, causing Ink to shiver.

“I-I can’t believe you admitted it…” Ink nearly whimpered, just as a hand gently cupped him between his thighs. 

“I didn’t say anything.”  

“Y-you did too…” 

“Shh… You’re ruining the moment.” 

 

* * *

 

Nightmare was nervous. 

More nervous than he had been at any other time in his life. 

He knew he had a wonderful boyfriend waiting for him back home. If Ccino rejected him, he didn’t lose much… Right? 

Telling Ccino of his… situation was so nerve wracking that Nightmare thought he was going to faint throughout the entire night. He barely heard the cafe’s patrons when they ordered, and there were several moments he lost track of what he was doing while making drinks. 

Ccino could tell something wasn’t quite right with his volunteer, but he wasn’t sure what. He told Nightmare several times throughout the night to take a break, but Nightmare only listened when he really wanted to. And therefore, he barely took any breaks. 

Finally, after the last customer left, Ccino finally figured out what was the matter with the poet. 

“Nightmare, you should go home. You haven’t been acting well all night.” Ccino started, trying to force him to at least sit in a chair for a moment. 

Nightmare did sit, and slightly slumped over himself. He took a deep breath. 

“Sorry, Ccino…” He muttered, trying not to look at his boss. Ccino frowned. 

“You don’t have to be sorry… But if it’s something I can help with, you can tell me, you know?” He gave Nightmare a gentle smile. The poet finally looked up at him.

“I…” Nightmare began, then paused, frowning. He shook his head. “It’s about… Our date.” 

Now it was Ccino’s turn to frown. 

“What about our date?” He asked, Nightmare’s nerves spreading to him like an infectious disease. 

“I… There’s something I need to tell you first.” Nightmare gently clenched his teeth. 

Ccino nodded, waiting for him to continue. 

“I… I’m polyamorous… And… And I have a boyfriend, but I still really like you. I know this isn’t something conventional and I’ll understand if you don’t want to go on our date anymore and-” 

“Nightmare.” Ccino cut him off. He blinked, not seeing any signs of shock or worry on the barista’s face. “That’s okay with me.” 

“What? Really?” Nightmare breathed as Ccino took the seat across from him. Ccino nodded. 

“But I guess I should tell you something about myself as well.” The cat lover began. 

Nightmare nodded, encouraging him to continue. 

“I’m… asexual. Sex repulsed, at that. I still like having romantic relationships, though. I’ve done this kind of thing before, actually. It’s not uncommon for people like me. But you should know, I can’t have sex with you.” Ccino smiled gently at him. 

Nightmare blinked, processing. 

Then, he smiled. 

“That’s perfectly okay with me.” He said softly, watching Ccino’s smile spread into a grin. 

“So… when are we going on this date?”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	28. Make Up Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ink and Dream move toward the future and Character introduced Ink to some interesting interns.

Ink left the art gallery a little before noon.

Summer was in full swing now, the heat rising from the concrete and suffocating the entire population of New Home City. The air was heavy with moisture and Ink cursed the fact most professional clothes for men didn’t accommodate the severe heat. 

His sweat could have just been the heat and his stifling clothing, or it could be the person he was meeting for lunch that day. 

He was uncomfortable with it, but he felt it was time. Granted, it wasn’t like it was sequentially a long time; only about two and a half months since they had last seen each other. Error had graduated, started his new job and they had moved into their new apartment. The more Ink thought about his coming wedding, the more he missed his friend. 

Dream, as they had been, long before they had ever dated. 

After seeing his name in the card Cross had given Error, Ink decided he needed to reach out. Error had to help him build up the courage to do it, but he was the one who  _ decided _ to. 

He opened the door to the small restaurant, a little hole in the wall taco shop Dream had suggested and spotted his friend - or he thought was still his friend - easily in the small dining area. 

Dream smiled and gently waved to him, beckoning him over to the small table where there was already a basket of tortilla chips and guacamole waiting for him. 

“Hey.” Ink said awkwardly as he took a seat. “Been waiting long?” 

“Nope.” Dream smiled reassuringly. “I already ordered, if you want to go order yours.” 

Ink delicately climbed back out of his seat and went to the counter, placing his order before going back to sit with Dream again. They sat uncomfortably for a few minutes, nibbling at chips and avoiding conversation before Ink had had enough. 

“Dream, I’m sor-” 

“Don’t, Ink.” Dream cut him off, a tight smile on his face. “I don’t want to hear it again and it’s not why I agreed to see you.” 

Ink grinned through a grimace, taking a drink of his soda. They sat in silence once more before the artist built up the courage to try again. 

“How have you been?” 

At this, Dream perked up. 

“I’ve been well. I met Cross… But you know that.” Dream laughed, smiling down at the table as he swirled condensation from his drink into lazy loops on the wood. 

“Yeah? You like him?” Ink smiled and watched his friend. Dream laughed. 

“Of course! I’m dating him!” A soft blush covered Dream’s cheeks as he continued to avoid meeting Ink’s eyes. “I’m… thinking about asking him to move in.” 

“What?!” Ink almost jumped out of his seat. “So soon?!” 

“Like you’re one to talk!” Dream cried, then laughed. “It wouldn’t be for a few months… His lease ends about the time ours does and I’d have to move anyway and…” 

“And?” 

“And Cross barely owns anything and he stays over most days anyway so he’s kind of already living with me…” 

“Why didn’t I know this?” Ink blinked, eyes changing to question marks and frowning that Error was keeping things from him. 

“I don’t think Cross and Error really exchange facts about their sex lives…” Dream scoffed. 

“So you’re having sex with him.” Ink stated, grinning impishly. 

“I thought that was implied?” Dream laughed, though the blush on his cheeks grew. “But stars, Ink, it’s like nothing I’ve ever…” His eyes shot to Ink, face melting into an apologetic grimace. “Experienced.” 

Ink simply laughed and shrugged. 

“Understandable. Did you know Error was a virgin when I met him?” 

Dream almost spit out his drink. 

“I didn’t WANT to know, Ink.” He frowned and wiped his mouth just as their food was set down and their numbers picked up. “...You ordered chicken nuggets and french fries off the kid’s menu?”

“You’re saying that as a question when you can clearly see it’s true.” 

“Does Error know? That you eat like a kid?” 

“Of course he knows. We feed each other chicken nuggets sometimes to get in the mood.” 

“Stars, Ink, that’s not romantic.” 

A trill of chortles. 

“I’m kidding. We only feed each  _ veggie nuggets  _ to get in the mood. It’s good for stamina, you know?” 

“Stop! I don’t want to know!” 

The two friends fell into laughter, a feeling of familiarity finally settling around them. When they pulled themselves out of their giggles, Ink perked up. 

“I missed you, Dream.” 

Dream said nothing and only looked away.

“I miss… being friends.” Was all that he returned. 

“Can we go back?” Ink asked hopefully. Dream looked back to him. 

“...” He smiled softly. “Yeah.” 

Ink returned the smile. 

“Dream… I… have something to ask you.” 

Dream blinked. 

“Okay?” 

“Would you… be my best man?” 

Dream’s eyes widened. 

“I thought you would have asked Blue.” Dream began fitfully playing with his drink’s straw with one hand while the fingers on the other began to drum a beat on the table. 

“I could have.” Ink conceded. “But… You’ve been there since day one. You’re still here. You don’t have to answer now, but… I wanted to ask you anyway.” 

“Would Error be okay with that? With your ex being your best man?” 

Ink laughed. 

“Error’s not that kind of guy, Dream. He doesn’t care about your past, or my past, or our shared past as lover’s. Besides, he knows Cross is crazy about you… On that note, I think Cross would say yes.” 

“Yes to what?” 

“To living with you.” Ink laughed. 

When they were finished, and it was close to time for Ink to head back to work, they stood and headed out of the small restaurant, smiling and chatting with one another. It was nice, to be best friends again. Or at least, closer to repairing their relationship than they had been. 

“Thanks for meeting me, Dream.” Ink said, turning to look at him when they hit the oppressive sidewalk. 

“Of course, Ink. It was good seeing you.” Dream smiled at his friend, then looked past him, over his shoulder, to the street where his ride was waiting for him, leaning against his motorcycle with Dream’s helmet in one hand and a bouquet of mismatched flowers in the other. 

Ink turned his head slightly and smiled at the sight. 

“Think about what I asked.” Ink said softly and gently hugged Dream. “I’ll talk to you later. We’ll have to go on a double date sometime!” He called as he ran up the sidewalk. 

Dream turned to his boyfriend, trying to hide a smile as he approached. 

“Got a hot date?” He asked, gesturing to the flowers. Cross blinked and glanced at them as if they had suddenly appeared in his hand. 

“Huh. I guess they knew I wanted to be a sap today.” He shrugged and held them out to Dream, who took them, still suppressing his smile. 

“You know I’m a boy, right?” He took a sniff. They smelled like a grocery store with faint floral undertones. 

“Boys can receive flowers. Gender stereotypes are arbitrary.” Cross set Dream’s helmet upon his skull and snapped the chin strap closed. 

“I’m also not a child; I can do that myself.” Dream pouted. 

“You’re cute when you’re annoyed.” Cross noted before leaning down and kissing the shorter skeleton. “Mm… And you taste like tacos… Did you get me any?” 

“No…” Dream frowned slightly, then smirked. “I guess you’ll just have to settle for me.” 

Cross smiled shyly before pulling Dream into him, kissing him once more and immediately deepening it. Dream squirmed, slightly embarrassed, but decided he didn’t care if everyone could see. He loved Cross. 

He  _ loved  _ him. 

His eyes flew open at his sudden realization and he pulled back slightly. 

“Dream?” Cross looked down at him, worried. Dream blinked a few times, then smiled. 

“Cross…” He started. “Do you… when your lease is up… want to move in with me?” 

Now it was Cross’s turn to blink, body going tense. 

“You sure?” Was his only response. Dream laughed. 

“You drink all my chocolate milk anyway... “ He shrugged. “Besides… I want you close…” 

Cross stared down at him, reminding Dream of that fateful first meeting. How Cross stared all night, then kissed him at the end. Now, Dream was so thankful he did. 

Finally, Cross smiled. 

“I’d love to.” 

 

* * *

 

Ink made his way back to the art gallery, a skip in his step. He felt infinitely better after meeting with Dream, even if he didn’t get an answer on him being in his wedding party. He felt like a bridge had been crossed, and he wanted to believe Dream felt the same. 

He entered the gallery and swiftly moved down the stairs toward the office. He needed to get a few things sorted out before the afternoon started and-

He stopped when he reached his desk. There was a younger skeleton sitting in his chair, staring back at him with a blank expression. 

“Chara?” Ink called. “There’s a child in here!” 

Chara walked back in from storage, carrying a box. 

“First, he’s not a child. He’s a teenager. And second, that’s one of our high school interns. That you’ve known about for weeks. That I reminded you of before you left for lunch.” 

Ink blinked rapidly, frowning in terror as he realized he really didn’t remember a single one of those incidents. 

“O-oh…” He finally laughed it off. “S-sorry!” He looked back to the kid in his chair. “Hi, I’m Ink.” He held out his hand. 

The high schooler merely looked at his hand and Ink withdrew it, tucking it into his pocket. 

“That’s Pale.” Chara set her box down and came over to him. “He’s going to be your assistant for the summer. They only work afternoons, and only on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They’re both enrolled at an art high school. Isn’t that right, Pale?” 

Pale nodded. 

“So… Where’s the other one?” Ink asked. 

“Coming!” Another voice yelled from storage. 

“He’s coming.” Chara echoed. “You got it?” She called back to the lagging intern.

“Yep!” 

The second teenager exited the storage room, two boxes in his arms with a few things piled on top. He walked cautiously, trying not to drop anything, though Chara had told him nothing was fragile and it didn’t matter if he did. She had also told him it was okay to make two trips, or to let her carry more, but he had insisted on trying to carry as many things as possible. 

Ink was struck immediately when he saw him. His bones were all black and he had blue markings on his cheeks. Ink’s eyes widened and his breath left him. It wasn’t like looking at a younger Error, no, it was more like looking at Error’s  _ child.  _

“You okay?” Pale asked, startling Ink out of his quiet wonder with just the sound of his voice. 

“Y-yeah!” Ink said quickly, grinning. 

“Aaand, this young man is Template.” Chara introduced him. 

“Hi!” Template said energetically after he set his boxes down. He had only dropped two things and seemed to be acting like he hadn’t noticed them. He held out his hand to Ink. “It’s nice to meet you! I really like the freaky pig on your desk!” 

Ink slowly moved to grip Template’s hand, looking down and noticing the kid was wearing gloves. 

“Oh! I wear gloves because I have haphephobia!” He quickly explained. Ink could feel bile rising in his throat and his hand wavered, unable to grip the other’s. 

He quickly ran into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him. 

“Oh no…” Template grimaced. “Oh no…! He hates me!” He declared. “Stars, he hates me! Already! It usually takes at least an hour! What’d I do?!” 

“Calm down. He doesn’t hate you.” Chara quickly reprimanded, looking from the bathroom to Template, a frown on her face. She suddenly realized Template’s reminiscence to Error, but she wasn’t quite sure why that would cause Ink to flee. If anything, she thought the artist would be enthralled. 

“He hates me…” Template continued. 

“He… might.” Pale conceded. 

“Noooo!” The other wailed. 

“Oh… boy…” Chara sighed and moved to the bathroom. She knocked once on the door. “Ink? Can I come in?” 

“That’s probably workplace harassment material.” Came the answer. 

 “Ink, just let me talk to you.” The manager sighed. 

“Fine. It’s unlocked.” 

Chara opened the door and slipped in, closing it behind her. 

“Okay, I can see he looks like Error…” She started, watching him as he wiped his mouth off while leaning against the sink and meeting her gaze in the mirror. 

“It’s not that…” Ink turned back around. “It’s kind of that… He looks like… He could be, if Error were older, I guess... Error’s son.” 

Chara blinked, then frowned as she tried to picture it. 

“Maybe? He reminds me more of you but with…” Her eyes went round. “But with Error’s looks…” 

“So… Like Error’s son.” Ink confirmed. She merely nodded. “I want him.” 

“You can’t have him. He’s got functional parents, unlike you two twits would be.” 

“No! I mean I want him as my assistant.” Ink laughed. 

“...” Chara pondered his request. “Why?” 

“It’s obvious! Because he looks like he’s our child! It’s only fitting!” 

“Can you manage him without throwing up? He thinks you hate him.” 

“He thinks I hate him?” 

“You did just run to vomit as soon as you met him.” 

“Oh… I’ll make it up to him!” 

“Okay, fine. But if you throw up a second time because of him, you’re getting Pale again.” 

They exited the bathroom to find Pale still sitting at Ink’s desk with Template pulling on his sleeve frantically, whining about how much Ink hated him and how this was his dream job and he’d already messed it up. Pale just blinked and let him. He was used to Template’s hysterias after fifteen years of being friends with the fool. 

“Sorry!” Ink said quickly. Template immediately stilled, eyes wide. “I just had lunch so I think I got some food poisoning… you said you liked my little piggy?” 

Template nodded. 

“Then you can have it. I only have it here because my fiance didn’t like it… Even after I went through all that trouble to paint it…” 

Template’s face lit up. 

“YOU painted it?!” 

“Yeah…” Ink laughed. “Error said it was freaky…” 

“It  _ is  _ freaky.” Chara muttered under her breath. 

“This is the best gift I’ve ever received!” Template looked like he could cry. Pale gently shook him, reminding him not not to. “Thank you.” 

“Also, boys.” Chara brought them back to order. “There’s going to be a small change. Pale, you’re going to be helping me, and Template you’ll be Ink’s assistant instead.” 

Pale’s face remained stale, yet Template’s entire being brightened and he looked as if he were ready to ignite. 

“This is the best day of my life!” He cried, laughing wildly. 

 

* * *

 

Ink got home that night, exhausted. 

Template was actually quite energetic, buzzing about and eager to learn and help. He… reminded Ink a lot of himself. But with Error’s looks. On the way to their apartment, he had a lot of time to think. 

But mostly, he had time to yearn. 

He came in the door to find Error had already shed his work clothes and put on sweats. He was moving around in the kitchen, making something for dinner. Another deep pang of longing wracked his body and he almost fell to the floor. Everything felt so right. He immediately abandoned his things at the door and went to Error, wrapping his arms around his waist and pressing himself into his back. 

“Hi, Error.” 

“Hi, clingy. What’s gotten into you?” Error’s body eased into his touch. 

“I met a kid today.” 

“Riveting.” 

“He looked like you.” 

“That’s unfortunate.” 

“But he acted like me.” 

“Now that’s REALLY unfortunate.” 

When his lover said nothing in return, Error turned around in his arms, looking down. Ink returned his gaze with a look Error had never seen on him before. If he didn’t know the artist so well, he would have thought Ink was upset. It was melancholic, but not sad. 

“What is it, Ink?” He asked softly, gently cupping his cheek. 

“Error… I want kids someday.” Ink breathed, his body shuddering from voicing his wants. 

His partner studied him, thumb rubbing gentle circles over his zygoma. 

“You know we’ll be terrible parents, right?” Error asked softly. 

“Aren’t all parents?” Ink asked, the hint of a smile playing upon his mouth. 

“Debatable. We’ll have to learn how to actually cook.” 

Ink’s cheeks twitched. 

“And we’ll have to wait until we can get a bigger place. This is no place for a child to grow up.” Error glanced around the apartment thoughtfully. Ink let out a soft laugh. “Oh, and-” 

Error pulled Ink closer, kissing him softly. 

“We’ll have to have a lot of sex. You can’t have children without sex.” Error grinned at him. Now, Ink was laughing heartily. 

“Error! Neither of us can get pregnant!” He snorted. 

“Still doesn’t mean we can’t have lots and lots of sex.” 

“I suppose you’re right…” Ink sighed, as if swooning. “Thank you, Error.” 

Error laughed. 

“You act like I’m allowing you to have children… I wouldn’t say yes if I didn’t want them too.” 

“You want kids?” Ink asked, startled. 

“I didn’t until you asked me about them. I thought about it, and if it’s with you, then I want them.” 

“Error?” 

“Yeah?” 

“That was really sappy but I love you anyway.” 

“I love you too, ass.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry for not updating last Wednesday. I was hit with a really bad case of writer’s block, plus a few things happened that, to put it lightly, didn’t feel so great? But after walking along a metaphorical beach, trying to see how to “cure” this block, diving deep into my own psyche, and in finality, creating my very own Sans for giggles, I got through it. I think a bit of a break was good for me. I hadn’t let myself really “slow down” since school. I was always pushing towards the next deadline. Which is fine, as deadlines help keep me organized. 
> 
> But everyone needs a break sometimes. And I forgot that. 
> 
> P.S. Template and Pale are the only ones with a canon age, coming in at 15 years old. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	29. Friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fresh accepts an invitation for a date, and Error begins to formulate a plot.

Fresh’s day started as most of his would: with a nice and healthy breakfast, displayed appealingly enough to make his followers want to lick their phone screens. But today he had the added responsibility of thinking about Error and Ink. He couldn’t say he hated the artist; no, outright hating someone was beneath him. Still, he didn’t like him, either. He was at a strange juncture between extreme dislike and simple indifference. 

They had already moved in down the hall from him. It was a two bedroom, like his, so Ink would be able to have an art studio. 

When Error had first asked about the apartments, the youngest brother had been ecstatic. He was getting what he wanted the most: his brother closer. He hadn’t really cared that Ink would be tagging along. It was a means to an end, for Fresh. But now Ink was Error’s _ fiance _ . They were going to be a  _ family.  _ And now that they had moved in,  _ he had barely even seen them.  _

He had had the childish fantasy that he would be able to see his brother whenever he wanted. He dreamed of having dinner with them. But truth be told, he was even more lonely than when Error lived across the city from him. It was a terrible thing to be so physically close to someone you loved and yet still feel there was an ocean between you. 

As a consequence, Fresh had fallen into a funk. 

No one noticed. 

No one was close enough to. 

He had one of his photo shoots today, for the soda brand he had decided to endorse after their meeting. He wasn’t feeling it, at all, but he needed to. He wasn’t exactly allowed to take time off for a mere, family-induced despondency when he had sponsors to please. 

So, he got dressed, called the restaurant he was going to pick up Decans’s payment up from for the day, and headed out with little to no time to spare. 

His body felt heavy and awkward and he barely managed to swerve around others while using his own two feet, so he decided to take the subway and walk, tucking his skateboard under an arm. His body’s turbulence was nothing compared to what his mind was moving through. 

It was like thinking through gelatin, thick and sticky. Fresh’s mind ruminated and stalled, his thoughts becoming cyclic with irrational thoughts and rationalizing ones following close after. 

_ I don’t like Ink. He’s taking Error from me.  _

_ How is he taking Error from you? He’ll always be your brother.  _

_ Ink isn’t good for Error. It’s all too fast.  _

_ Error decides what’s good for Error. You just have to support him.  _

_ I should talk to someone about how I feel.  _

_ You’re only going to sound like a whiny brat, and a burden too. They’re going to hate you if you bring it up. You just want attention.  _

No matter what Fresh did, he couldn’t logic the fear and embarrassment out of himself. Even when Geno called (Fresh didn’t do the calling these days) and he felt like bringing it up, he always stopped short, snapping his mouth shut. 

Fresh hated feeling this way. 

“Thanks.” He murmured through his grin to the cashier at the hamburger stand as he took the paper bag, already damp with grease. 

“Have a good day.” The young human woman said, going back to the algebra textbook she must have been using for one of the universities. 

Fresh turned and left, his eyes beginning to feel heavy. Every simple interaction was beginning to wear on him. He wanted to go home. 

Instead, he went to the park because he knew Decans was waiting for him and if he couldn’t keep a schedule for Decans, he would feel like a terrible not-quite-friend-but-not-just-acquaintance. 

“Hey, Decans.” Fresh greeted, his voice feeling foreign in his own throat. Scratchy and thin. Rough. 

Decans looked up, a small frown on his face, brows knitting together. 

“Got you some of ‘Pants’s Hamburgers. Thought you might like it today.” Fresh grinned and sat, placing the bag in his lap and beginning to dig their separate meals out. 

Decans’s frown deepened. 

“Fresh.” 

“Yeah?” The other didn’t meet his gaze. 

“You’re wrong.” 

That got Fresh’s attention. 

He snapped his head up and turned to look at him. 

“What?” 

“You’re wrong. All wrong… you’ve been wrong!” Decan scratched at his skull in frustration. 

“Have I? Sorry, buddy.” Fresh tried to laugh it off, handing the other his food before going back to looking at his lap. 

“No! No sorries…” Decans sighed. “I… I’ve been worried.” 

“No need to worry, Decans. I’ll be okay. You don’t have to talk. I know you don’t like to.” 

“Stop!” Decans snapped. “I…” he frowned, trying to find the words. He had thought about this moment a lot, and what he would say, but now that it was happening, he promptly forgot everything he had ever wanted to express to the other. 

Instead of protesting, Fresh just leaned against the back of the bench, letting Decans continue. 

“I… I noticed… You’re not yourself. You can talk to me.” Decans finished, biting into one of his own fries. 

Fresh paused. 

Did he wanted to talk to Decans about something like this? Did he want to talk to anybody? He didn’t, but one glance at Decans and he knew if he didn’t tell him something, he was going to suffer the other’s unintentional wrath. 

“Okay, I’ll tell you.” Fresh sighed, summoned his courage, and told his sad tale all the way from his accident as a child to the present. 

“...” Decans, by then, had finished most of his meal and was processing Fresh’s words. “Why don’t you get friends?” 

“What?” Fresh asked, more edge in his voice than he had meant. He was a bit taken aback. Out of all the pieces of advice Decans could have given him, Fresh hadn’t thought  _ that  _ would be it. 

“It sounds like you’re lonely. You rely on your family for everything. They love you, but they also have other people. You could use some friends too.” Decans shrugged. 

“But I don’t really get along with-“ 

“I get it. People suck. But we get along, don’t we? There’s probably other people out there you’d get along with too.” 

“We’re not really friends…” 

Decans sighed sharply enough to slice a brick in half.

“Then let’s  _ be  _ friends, Fresh.” He rolled his eyes. “What are you doing Sunday afternoon?” 

Fresh thought for a moment. 

“Nothing.” He said dumbly. 

“Let’s go somewhere… quiet.” Decans added. “We can figure out the details later. We’re almost out of time, so we should start doing pictures.” 

Fresh blinked, then smiled genuinely, albeit a bit tiredly. 

“Okay… thanks, Decans.” 

Decans shrugged. 

“It’s nothing. Besides, I thought we were already friends, anyway. Now you just have to see it.” 

 

* * *

 

Error had come up with a plan. A brilliant plan. A plan to get Fresh and Ink talking because he realized something was off about his brother the moment Fresh had seen the painting Ink had given him for his birthday. 

Fresh had shrunk into himself, as much as was possible for someone as large as him to do, and hadn’t been hanging around Error’s apartment like a fruit fly on spoiling peaches once he and Ink had moved in. It was out of character for him, and Error had more or less guessed the problem: 

Ink, and the unacceptable pace their relationship was following. Error understood Fresh’s hesitancy. And anyone’s, really. If he, himself, wasn’t in a love induced stupor, he would have thought the same. But he needed his friends and family to understand. Even Geno was more accepting, especially after Error promised they weren’t getting married right away. 

Fresh still kept his distance, and it worried Error. He should have been slinking around, trying to squeeze himself in between Ink and Error when they watched TV at night after work. Error couldn’t even find him loitering in the hallways when he peeked his head outside. 

So, he came up with a plan.

For this plan, he was going to need to involve Cross. Or, more specifically, one of Cross’s gaming systems. 

He still needed to go and see Cross, either way. So one afternoon, he texted Ink saying he’d be home late and then left work to head to his friend’s apartment. They hadn’t hung out much since Ink happened, but such was life when you had a significant other. They were both finally becoming the adults they probably should have been two years ago when they graduated from undergrad. 

Cross answered after just a few knocks on his apartment door. 

“A suit, huh? I didn’t think I was  _ that  _ important.” Cross smirked, looking Error up and down before letting him inside the almost completely trashed apartment. 

“Unlike you, I have a job.” Error shrugged out of his jacket and draped it over his arm, not wanting it to accidentally touch anything. “You know you’re a slob, right?” 

“You tell me everytime you come over. But you forget, I don’t live alone. At least half of it is his.” Cross noted. 

“That’s definitely you’re underwear.” Error pointed out. 

“How do you know what my underwear looks like?!”

“You’ve had the same underwear since freshman year and I’ve seen you drunkenly undress and run across the quad too many times to count. Trust me, I know it when I see it.” 

Cross grimaced slightly. 

“Okay, noted: Get new underwear… before moving in with Dream.” 

Error blinked. 

“You’re moving in with Dream?” He asked. Cross grinned timidly and averted his eyes. 

“Let’s go to my room and talk. So the roomie doesn’t hear.” 

 

* * *

 

Once they were settled in the graduate student’s room, with Error’s things placed neatly on his uncluttered desk and both of them sitting on Cross’s bed, Cross told him the story of Dream asking him to move in. 

“And you said yes?” Error asked. 

“Of course I said yes. I don’t even want to be  _ here  _ right now. No offense.” 

“None  _ really _ taken…” Error grumbled, recognizing the feeling in his own bones. “Are you ready for that step? You can’t have your underwear hanging on the couch when you live with your boyfriend.” 

“It’s already hung from Dream’s couch.” Cross grinned. Error grimaced ever so slightly. “Where we had se-” 

“Yeah, I got it.” Error threw one of the pillows at him. “I don’t need the details.” 

“I think I’m in love with him, Error.” Cross said, suddenly serious. “How do you know you’re in love with someone?” 

“Er…” Error shifted uncomfortably, unsure of how to put everything he felt for Ink into a few simple sentences. “I guess… When I figured it out… Was just… I wanted to spend time with him. All the time.” 

Cross nodded, still listening. 

“I wanted to be  _ nice  _ to him. I never  _ want _ to be nice to anyone.” 

“Okay, this is all fine and good, but I need more  _ feelings _ . This is very specific to you and it’s not going to help me.” Cross frowned. Error glared. 

“I don’t know.” He snapped. “I just knew I wanted to be with him forever and when I thought about us breaking up… I’d shut down. Not a reboot, but my mind would go blank and I’d panic, even if it was just me thinking of the possibility of not being with him.” Error shrugged and frowned softly. 

“...” Cross looked away to the wall above his desk, where photographs of him and Dream were pinned in place. There were so many of them, he barely had any room to tack important notes from his advisor up. “I love him.” 

“Congrats.” Error grumbled. 

“I gotta tell him.” 

“You probably should.” 

“It’s gotta be super romantic.” 

“I’m gonna stop you right there. What do you know about romance?” Error frowned at him, but Cross either didn’t hear, or he completely ignored him by bulldozing onto his next statement. 

“Let’s get away to the beach, Error.” 

“What? Hell no! You’re telling Dream you love him, not me!” 

“Not what I meant!” Cross laughed. “Let’s go with Ink and Dream, and I can take Dream out for a walk on the beach at sunset and tell him. It’s the perfect plan!” 

“All this to say ‘I love you’?” Error frowned. 

“I’m sorry you just blurted it out while your fiance was crying after you accidentally made him jealous.” 

Error scowled. 

“I have a real job now. I can’t just take off work because you don’t want to plan a romantic getaway on your own.” 

“King’s Weekend.” Cross offered. “A four day weekend your job should let you off for. It’s perfect.” 

“I don’t know… I’ll have to talk to Ink first. I can’t surprise him anymore.” 

“Why not?” 

“That’s how we got engaged. I surprised him with the apartment and he got pissy so he went out and bought a ring and proposed.” 

Cross blinked. 

“You two are perfect together.” 

“Ugh. Because we’re idiots?” 

“Because you’re idiots.” Cross confirmed, pausing again. “You know what? You’re right. I should take Dream on our own. It’d be more romantic if we had the whole beach house to ourselves.” 

“You have enough money to rent a whole beach house on your own?” Error looked at him curiously. 

“I’ve been fighting for money this summer instead of getting a regular job. I’m making way more than I did as a cashier at the grocery store.” 

“Mixed martial arts again?” Error asked. 

Cross nodded. 

“Why did you even go back to school when you got back in the country? You should have just opened your own dojo and taught kids and shit.” 

“Businesses fail all the time, Error. I need a practical way of making money.” 

“...” Error sighed and frowned. “But you’re not happy. With your degree, I mean.” 

“Doesn’t matter. I need to make money.” Cross shrugged. “And if me and Dream ever get married, I need to support my family. Sometimes, dreams just don’t work, Error.” 

“...I guess you’re right. Does Dream know about your weird martial arts fetish?” 

“...Not really.” 

“You should tell him sooner rather than later, Cross. Especially if you’re making your living by getting punched in the face.” 

“He’ll just worry… But I’ll tell him.” Cross sighed. 

“I guess it’s time he knows about that too.” 

* * *

 

When Error got home later, Cross’s Delta Switch tucked into a canvas bag, he found his fiance sprawled on the couch, almost asleep. He stirred slightly, one eye opening lazily to look at the other. 

“Welcome home…” Ink slurred with exhaustion. “What’cha got?” 

“I borrowed some games from Cross.” Error briefly explained, setting his things down and moving to sit on the couch and pulling the smaller skeleton into him. “Rough day, huh?” 

“Mm...yeah. Template is really… energetic. He’s decided to ignore that you exist. I don’t know why, but I think he doesn’t find you cool enough to be my fiance.” Ink turned into his side. 

“Why do you think that?” Error asked, raising a brow. 

“Because he said, ‘He sounds too boring to be your fiance. I’m going to pretend he doesn’t exist.’” 

“That…  _ is _ pretty good evidence.” Error tried to hold back a laugh. Maybe he’d figure out a way to get off work early so he could pick Ink up on one of the days the two interns worked. He wanted to meet this kid. 

“And we’re having dinner with the Gasters next week.” Ink seemed to be slowly re-energizing. 

“Why? I mean… I guess, why do they want  _ me _ to have dinner with them?” Error cocked his head to the side. 

“I told them about our engagement and they want to celebrate. I like them.” Ink smiled. “Kind of wish they could have adopted me when I was a kid.” 

“You might be more of a functioning adult if they had.”  

Ink pouted. 

“You had a parent and look at how you turned out.” 

“Correction: I had Geno. My mom fucked off after my dad died.” 

“Mm…” Ink gently nuzzled his chest. “Still… You had family.” 

“...” Error looked down at him. “I… don’t want to pressure you… But, if you want to tell me… What happened during your childhood?” 

Ink went silent for a few moments, then laughed bitterly. 

“I don’t know. I really don’t. The story I was told was that I must have been living on the streets with someone, got in an accident where I hurt my head, which caused amnesia. I woke up in the hospital with no memories, not even a name. They suspect my mother must have been living on the streets when I was born, since there wasn’t even a record of me in the national database. When I got better, I was put into foster care. People always feel sorry for me, but I don’t even remember it.” He laughed again. 

Error gently rubbed the back of Ink’s skull. 

“And you couldn’t keep down a foster home because you were a little shit?” 

That got Ink laughing for real. 

“No! At first I tried really hard to be good! They just got annoyed at all my doctor’s visits and me forgetting everything all the time… And maybe  _ sometimes _ I stole money from their wallets when they were sleeping, but that was only like five different homes.” 

Now Error was laughing. 

“You’re crazy, you know that, right?” 

“Why do you think I asked you to marry me? Since you’re so  _ uncool _ and all.” 

“You’re going to blame all this on me? You’re the one who watched me stab cockroaches and thought, ‘That’s him. He’s the one.’ I’m not responsible for your bad decisions.” 

Ink snorted. 

“I can’t help but to find a madman attractive. Even sexy…” He flicked his eyes up to Error’s, both of his eye lights mismatched hearts. 

“No.” Error said flatly. “You’re so tired you can barely move.” 

Ink pouted and let out a whine. 

“That’s not true.” 

“It so is.” Error stood, gathering the artist up in his arms. “Come on. You need to go to bed.” 

“Not without you…” Ink gently put his arms around his lover’s neck, holding on. 

“Ugh, fine.” Error grumbled, moving into their bedroom. 

“Why did you need to get the games from Cross?” Ink asked as Error undressed him and put him into pajamas. 

“It’s a gaming system that a lot of people can play at once. You’re going to invite Fresh over one night and we’re all going to play.” Error explained, starting to change out of his own clothes once Ink was taken care of. 

“Don’t you mean  _ you’ll _ invite Fresh over?” Ink blinked. 

“No, I mean you. It’ll mean more coming from you.” 

“...He hates me.” Ink sighed. “He won’t come.” 

“He doesn’t hate you.” Error sat next to him on the bed. “He doesn’t know you. He just needs to realize you’re family.” 

Ink looked up at him, trying his best to smile. 

“Okay. I’ll ask him tomorrow after work… He should be home then, right?” 

Error nodded before leaning in and pressing a gentle kiss onto Ink’s forehead. 

“It’ll be okay, I promise.” 

Ink smiled. 

“I trust you, Error.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was stated earlier in the story that Error and Cross became friends by having a physical brawl over Chara. I just wanted you all to know that Cross completely wiped the floor with Error’s ass. It’s very important everyone knows that.
> 
> As always, thanks for reading!


	30. A Sweet Treat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fresh kind of works through his feelings, and Cross and Dream go on a date.

After work the following evening, Ink did as he had been instructed to do and marched down the hall to the youngest brother’s apartment door. 

He plastered a smile on his face and knocked once, twice, then thrice, gently and softly, alerting the inhabitant to his presence. He waited and waited, not hearing any movement from inside, or any shuffling towards, or even away, from the door. Ink frowned, and knocked again. Error had promised Fresh would be home, since he didn’t have any friends and Geno was working. There was no reason for him  _ not _ to be at home. 

When Fresh didn’t answer a second time, he knocked again, only this time he continued his knocking, relentlessly. If Fresh wanted him to stop, he was going to have to come tell him himself. 

Finally, Ink heard the door unlocking and slowly opening. He pulled his arm back down to his side, grinning up at the tall skeleton. 

“Hi, Fresh!” He greeted. 

“Hi…” Fresh frowned down at him. He looked disheveled, with even his glasses askew. 

“So I… We… We were wondering if you wanted to come play video games tonight. Error’s gonna order pizza and I already got some sodas… Oh! And we have chocolate cake! It’s gonna-” 

“I don’t like sweets.” Fresh murmured, then closed the door. 

Ink blinked, eye lights cycling rapidly. He quickly began knocking on the door again. 

“Fresh? It’s okay! You don’t have to have any cake! I’ll eat your piece! Well, Error probably will… He likes chocolate way more than I do…” 

The door opened again, with Fresh rubbing his forehead. 

“Just go away.” 

“What?” Ink’s face fell. 

“I don’t want to talk to you. Just go. 

“But you have to come play games…?” Ink tried to bring his smile up again. 

“Just go!” Fresh yelled this time, pulling back inside and slamming the door. Right in Ink’s face. 

Ink stared at the door for a few brief and excruciating moments before turning and booking it back to his own apartment. 

“H-He’s not coming.” He said quietly as he entered the apartment and leaned against the door, trying his best not to look at his partner on the couch. 

“He’s not coming?” Error asked skeptically. “What happened…?” 

“N-nothing! He’s just tired…” Ink laughed sadly. 

“Ink, you’re not looking at me.” Error stood and crossed over to him. “What happened?” 

Ink finally looked up at him, sniffling and blinking back tears. 

“He said he didn’t want to talk to me, then he slammed the door in my face.” He sighed. “I told you he hated me! But you made me go over there anyway!” 

“Hey, I have no idea what’s going on with him.” Error sighed and gently wiped a stray, inky tear from his cheek. “Let me go talk to him, and when I get back we’ll figure out if he hates you or not.” 

Ink sighed dramatically and pulled away from the door. 

“There’s no ‘deciding.’ He DOES.” He grumbled, moving to the couch and plopping down, crossing his arms and glaring at Error. 

Error groaned and rolled his eyes. 

“Stop with the dramatics. I’ll be right back.” He opened the door and closed it with a resounding ‘thud.’ 

Error didn’t want to be mad at his little brother. He really didn’t. But seeing Ink so upset made him want to kick down Fresh’s door and yell at him like he hadn’t in years. He was going to give Fresh a chance to explain himself first, however. He was a better person now… 

At least he thought he was. 

“Fresh?” He asked, hitting his knuckles on the door. 

Silence. 

“Fresh I know you’re there.” He growled, moving to try and turn the doorknob. It was locked and he sighed frustratedly, still trying to jiggle it anyway. “Why would you do that to Ink? Explain.” 

There was still no response, only pushing Error further towards the point of being the angry older brother who would wipe the floor with Fresh, even if he was six feet tall now. 

“Fresh! Talk. To. Me!” 

Still nothing. 

“Okay, fine. I don’t know what’s funking gotten into you but until you grow your butt up, don’t even thinking about coming near me OR Ink. He really likes you, you know? You’re just being a snobby baby. Grow the funk up.” Error spat before pulling away and stalking back to his apartment. 

“See?” Ink said after one look at Error’s disgruntled face. “He hates me.” 

“He hates both of us!” Error growled, slamming the door behind him. “He didn’t even want to talk to me.” 

“Huh. That’s weird. I thought he would have.” Ink frowned. 

“Yeah, well you thought wrong.” Error hissed. 

“Hey! Don’t take it out on me!” Ink frowned, crossing his arms again. 

“Sorry.” Error sighed and sat down next to him. “I just… don’t know what’s gotten into him.”

“It’s me… It’s  _ us _ .” Ink laid his head on Error’s shoulder. 

Error grumbled under his breath and shook his head. 

“I’ll call Geno later… Maybe he can see what’s up.” 

 

* * *

 

After they had come to the agreement of moving in together, Cross proclaimed they needed to celebrate. He suggested having a date night that Saturday, and Dream was excited, as he always was for their ‘date nights’. Anytime spent with Cross was magical, and maybe on one of these dates, he would get the balls to tell him how he felt. 

Tonight he met Cross outside of his apartment, his boyfriend leaning on a strange car he didn’t recognize. 

“No bike?” Dream asked as he walked up to him. 

“Not tonight.” Cross grinned and opened the backseat, motioning for Dream to climb in. 

Dream slid to the far side, noticing they had their own driver tonight before Cross sat next to him and closed the door. The driver sped off without a word, a GPS on the dashboard highlighting their route. 

“You called an UnderLyft?” He asked skeptically as he buckled himself in. Cross laughed. 

“We’re going somewhere I’ve wanted to take you for a while… I know you said you didn’t drink because Ink doesn’t like to be around drunks so… I thought if you might want to try, this would be the best place for it.” Cross shrugged. The speech had sounded far less peer pressure-ish in his head. 

Dream quirked a brow bone. 

“I didn’t really want to go to a bar tonight, Cross.” 

“It’s not a bar!” Cross cried quickly. “You’ll have fun whether you drink or not. This place’s fun no matter what.” 

“You’ve been before?” 

“I was dragged there on one of Error’s double dates way back.” Cross rolled his eyes. “We went with some chicks named…  _ Stars  _ their names were similar… Uh, I think it was… Catty and Bratty? They were the worst.” 

“BUT the place was fun even with their ugly laughs.” He was quick to add. 

Dream laughed. 

“Okay. I’m interested. What’s this place like?” 

“If I told you, it’d ruin the surprise.” Cross gave him the lazy half grin that drove him wild. 

Tonight. He would tell Cross tonight. 

If this place was as special as Cross made it out to be. 

“Here you guys are.” Their driver pulled to the curb and Cross slid out, opening the door for Dream and helping him out. 

“Thanks.” Cross called. 

“Thank you.” Dream chirped as well before his boyfriend closed the door and the car swerved back into traffic. He looked up at the sign. 

“The… Candy Shoppe?” He asked, looking back to Cross, who nodded and smiled, slipping his hand into his. 

“Come on… I got a reservation and we’re right on time.” He grinned and pulled Dream inside. 

The entrance to the restaurant looked like a general candy store. Almost like the ones you would find in small town malls, but with an atmosphere of intrigue and the sterile lights promising more. 

At this time of night, there weren’t many children hanging about, and Dream noted that the ones present seemed to be mostly leaving with their parents. Cross moved straight to the host stand and told them his name and reservation. Without wasting much time at all, the host picked up a few menus and led them into the maze of tables and chairs, zigzagging until they reached a small booth with a window. 

The host set the menus down. 

“Your waiter will be with you soon!” They promised before leaving and allowing the two of them to sit down. 

After passing through the candy shop up front, they had entered into a nice restaurant atmosphere. It reminded Dream of a place where steak and seafood would be served, but without the lobster decor everywhere. 

“See? Not so bad.” Cross grinned and opened his menu. “They also have lots of vegetarian stuff.” 

Dream’s eyes moved down the menu. 

“There’s so many drinks…” He whispered. “These… they’re huge! And expensive!” 

Cross laughed. 

“But they’re filled with alcohol and candy. Some even have cotton candy on them… Like that one.” He leaned over and pointed one out that was called ‘The Drake.’ 

“...” Dream frowned down at the menu. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“I’ve just… Never had alcohol before… But I kind of want it… But it’s expensive!” Dream sighed, sitting back abruptly. 

“It’s fine. We can share it. They’re huge.” Cross grinned. “And if you don’t like it, I’ll just drink it.” 

“But you don’t even have a job for the summer.” Dream continued to pout. 

“Er… About that… I’ve been doing amateur MMA for money…” Cross shrunk into himself at his confession. Dream smirked. 

“I knew it!” He grinned. “I knew you were doing something weird for cash.”

Cross grimaced. 

“I’m not that sneaky, huh?” 

“Not at all. You’re covered in bruises all the time.” 

“You’re not mad? Or going to tell me to stop?” 

“No… I trust you to take care of yourself. But I’m happy to know it’s not the cage fighting I imagined you were doing.” He laughed softly. “Okay, let’s do it.” 

“Do what?” Cross frowned slightly. 

“Get the drink! It’ll be fun.” He smiled. Cross nodded, smiling slightly just as their waiter appeared. 

“Hello, I’m Strawberry and I’ll your waiter tonight.” The skeleton grinned from beneath the pinkish goop covering his entire body. The two of them stared, blinking up at him while he patiently waited, grin still stuck on his face. “What can I get you to drink?”

Dream was the first to recover and kicked Cross’s shin underneath the table, shaking him out of his astonishment. 

“H-Hi…” Dream grinned at their server. “We’d like to share a ‘The Drake’ please. And waters for us both.” 

Strawberry nodded, jotting the order down on his pad. 

“Do you know what you want to eat, or do you two love birds still need a minute?” He continued to grin. 

“I know!” Cross almost leaped out of his seat. He blinked and looked back to Dream. “I kind of want to surprise you, if you’ll let me.” 

Dream laughed. 

“Okay, surprise me, Romeo.” 

Cross grinned and motioned for Strawberry to lean into him before whispering their super secret order to the server, who nodded and smiled, noting everything on his pad. 

“Alrighty~ It’ll be just a bit. Let me know if you need anything.” He winked before moving to put their order into the computer. 

When he was out of earshot, Dream and Cross looked back at each other and started giggling. 

“Cross, you were so rude! You were just staring at him like this-” Dream widened his eyes and opened his mouth, letting tongue loll out. 

“I did not! But in my defense he’s a skeleton covered in pink goo! Is he even allowed to work in food service?!” 

Dream looked to where their waiter had been standing and inspected the carpet. 

“He didn’t leave any goop behind… I guess it’s just his magic.” He laughed again. 

“If there’s any goo in our food I’m asking for a full refund.” 

“Cross!” Dream snorted with laughter. 

“Here are your waters!” Strawberry appear and set the glasses in front of them. “Your other drink is taking some time, but I’ll get it over as soon as the bartender’s done with it.” 

“Okay, thanks.” Dream smiled, watching him walk away. 

“Do you think he heard me?” Cross asked quietly. 

“He didn’t seem to…” 

“We’ll leave a good tip.” 

Dream laughed and took a sip of his water, nice and cold. His eye lights flicked up to watch Cross as he fiddled with the condiment tray, flicking through the packets of sugar before pulling a few of them out and tucking them into the pocket of his jeans. 

“Cross…” He scolded mildly, unable to truly be mad at him. At least for pilfering sugar packets when no one was looking. 

“What? It’s free.” Cross shrugged. “They’re the perfect size. They-” 

“They can be easily carried and perfect for on the go. I know, Cross. You say that every time we go out.” Dream chuckled under his breath. 

“Then why get mad about it?” Cross grinned and Dream felt his soul hit the floor. 

He was just… so… 

Handsome and charming and any and all other words that could describe someone so perfect, even with all of his weaknesses. No one, in the history of monsterkind, so absolutely completed him that Dream was left utterly breathless by the mere comprehension Cross was a real person. And  _ his  _ person. 

He sucked in a breath. 

Now was as good of a time as any to tell Cross how he felt. 

“Cross I-” 

“One ‘The Drake!’” Strawberry singsonged as he set a giant goblet of mixed liquors topped with fluffy cotton candy down between them. 

Dream sighed, smiling up at their waiter. 

“Thanks-” He frowned, tilting his head. 

Strawberry was making eyes at Cross, who was frowning and sinking into his seat as if to get as far away from the dripping pink nightmare as physically possible. 

“I’ll be back soon.” Strawberry winked at him, then went back to serve his other customers. 

Dream blinked, then laughed again. 

“He likes you.” He grinned. 

“What? Gross! He’s goopy!” Cross cried. That caused Dream to laugh in earnest now. 

“You don’t want his goop? It probably tastes like a milkshake…” Dream laughed so hard he snorted. 

“Ew, no!” Cross pouted and crossed his arms. “There’s only one monster’s goop I would ever want, and thank the stars, he doesn’t have any.” 

“Hm… You sure about that? He could be keeping secrets from you.” 

“I’m sure… I’ve seen every inch of this monster. Every. Inch. Even that little freckle he hates, that’s like right on his-” 

“Okay!” Dream exclaimed, face almost glowing with how fervent his blush was. “Let’s drink…” 

“Huh…” Cross eyed the giant alcoholic beverage as a painter might eye a canvas. 

He stood, still inspecting it and moved around the table until he was on Dream’s side, then slid into the seat next to him. 

“Uh-huh… Yeah… Yeah! This is the perfect angle for drinking.” He dunked one of their straws into the giant goblet. 

“Cross! There’s not enough room for both of us…” Dream pouted. 

“Guess you’ll just have to sit on my lap…” Cross slowly leaned in, gently pressing his forehead to Dream’s temple. 

Instead of moving to sit on Cross’s lap, Dream merely moved a fraction of an inch over. 

“There…” He said quietly. Cross nuzzled his temple gently before pulling back. 

“See? Not so hard.” He smiled, then looked back to their giant drink. “Do you want to do the honors?” 

Dream stared at the large glass, steeled himself, and nodded. 

He took his own straw and placed it into the liquid, taking a tentative sip and pulling back abruptly. 

“Woah!” He blinked, eyes turning to stars. “That’s… Really good?!” 

“Told you…” Cross grinned and took a drink of his own. “Mm… lemonade-y.” 

“It tastes so good… Like…” Dream pouted in thought. 

“Candy?” 

“Candy!” 

Cross laughed. 

“Just don’t drink too much too fast. That’s when you get in trouble.” 

“Roger that!” Dream took another sip. 

“Order up!” Strawberry, seeming less his cheerful self now that Cross was practically falling into Dream’s personal space. Just one less happy couple he was going to be able to break up that night. 

He set their food down on the table, a smorgasbord of brightly colored foods and beautifully presented vegetable platters. 

“Thanks.” Cross grinned at him. Strawberry merely gave a curt smile before sauntering away.

“Cross?” Dream asked, pointing a shaking finger at one item in particular. 

It was a tray of miniature hamburgers, each with a different colored bun and arranged accurately in the colors of the rainbow. 

Cross laughed slightly. 

“They’re veggie patties. I didn’t order anything with meat.” 

“They’re from…” 

“From your favorite childhood cartoon, yeah.” 

Dream could feel unearned tears beginning to fill his eye sockets. 

“And it’s all vegetarian?” He asked, trying to wipe the tears away. 

“Well, yeah, it’s gotta be if no one at the table eats meat.” Cross rolled his eyes. 

“Wait, you’re not eating meat?” Now the tears were almost breaking the dam down. 

Cross smiled at him tenderly. 

“I know it makes you sick… If we’re going to move in together, I don’t want you to have to see that in your own home, or worse, accidentally get your food contaminated.” 

“Cross…” Dream sniffled, then pressed his forehead into the other’s sternum, still trying to push back his tears but losing the battle horribly. 

Cross gently placed his hand on the back of his boyfriend’s head, rubbing it soothingly. 

“That’s how much you mean to me, Dream. I lo-” 

“NO!” Dream shouted, pushing back from the other. 

“What?” Cross looked crestfallen, his mouth askew and eyes worried. 

“I love you.” Dream said simply, smiling at him. “I just wanted to say it first.” 

Cross laughed softly. 

“I love you too, dork.”  

 

* * *

 

After dinner, where they both had gotten a bit giggly from the gargantuan adult drink they shared, Cross paid and, indeed, left a good tip, they went into the foyer where Dream got a bag of gummies in the shape of penguins before they left. 

“Gross, black licorice mixed with white? How is that good?” Cross chastised, though he paid for the bag of edible aquatic birds nonetheless. 

“They’re cute?” Dream offered with a smile and a shrug, taking the bag back from Cross. 

“I don’t think the deliciousness is contingent on the cuteness.” Cross grumbled, wrapping his arm around Dream’s shoulders and beginning to steer him outside where they would wait for their ride home. 

They stood underneath a street lamp, Cross still hugging Dream tightly to his body. The smaller skeleton opened up the plastic bag, fishing a penguin out and popping it into his mouth. 

“You’re still hungry?” Cross asked, watching Dream as he slowly chewed, his face screwed up in a look of utter disgust. 

He swallowed painfully, grimacing and shaking his head. 

“Not anymore…” He muttered. “I’ll just give these to Nightmare. He likes bitter things.” 

“...” Cross watched him for a brief instant before bending down and kissing him, only to pull away quickly. “I don’t think anyone’s going to like those.” 

Dream laughed. 

“Sorry I wasted your money.” He tucked the sweets into one of his pockets, hoping they wouldn’t get smashed on the car ride back. 

“Maybe Nightmare really will like them.” Cross shrugged, not taking it as a total loss. “Did you like it? The place, I mean. Obviously you didn’t like the penguins.” 

“Yeah, I liked it. A lot.” Dream leaned into him, smiling softly. “Thanks for taking me.” 

Cross stared down at him, face impassive, before speaking again. 

“You’re so beautiful, Dream.” He whispered. 

Dream snorted. 

“What brought that on?” 

“Just looking at you. Thinking.” Cross grinned. “And how stars-damn beautiful you are.” 

Dream teasingly nudged him. 

“You had too much to drink.” 

“Did not… But even if I did, it’s still true. You’re beautiful, Dream.” Cross gently cupped his cheek. “I thought so from the moment I saw you, standing outside of Error’s shit apartment building, frantically pressing the button for Ink to let you in.” 

“And there was my knight in shining armor, scrambling to pick up a beer can his friend made him play fetch for. Then he forced me to watch a horror movie, and glared at me the entire time.” Dream teased, smiling. 

“It worked…” Cross shrugged, bending down to kiss Dream once more. “I love you Dream. I really, truly do.” He whispered against his mouth. 

“I love you too, Cross…” Dream whispered, pulling him into another kiss. 

They began frantically grabbing at one another, the only thing stopping them from descending into total, love-induced mayhem being the fact they were still in public. When their UnderLyft driver pulled up, they forced themselves apart and restrained their libidos the entire trip home, their palms hot and sweaty as they clasped together in the middle seat.

At the very end of the night, when they were lying against each other in Dream’s bed, bare bone against bare bone, Dream timidly whispered, 

“We should get married.” 

“...You mean like, someday, right?” Cross asked, looking down at him. He smiled. 

“Yeah, someday.” 

 

* * *

 

Fresh spent most of the weekend avoiding calls from Geno and curled into something that resembled a burrito in bed using his comforter. 

He messed up. He messed up  _ royally.  _ He hadn’t been able to control himself when he saw Ink’s face. It would have been easier to handle if it had been Error standing at his door. 

Or so he told himself. 

But Sunday came around anyway, despite his sincere efforts to wish it away. He had to roll out of bed and brush his teeth, wash his face, and all of those silly, trivial things that took too much effort. But he would do it - because he promised. 

Decans told him they needed to be there when the museum opened. It would be less chaotic and much quieter, plus the tickets were cheaper before noon. 

So Fresh dressed, decided to leave his skateboard at home, and headed out. 

He poked his head out of his front door, looking down the hall to make sure his brother and fiance weren’t out this early for whatever reason. He knew Error wasn’t a morning type, and running into Ink would be pure and utter hell, so he was thankful when he saw no sign of them. 

He slipped out and down the elevator with little effort. 

The subway ride was nice, seeing as how most of the city’s inhabitants didn’t wake up before noon on Sunday. Fresh felt naked without his skateboard, yet knew it was better this way. It’s not like he could ride it, and the museum staff would probably confiscate it until they left, anyway. 

He found the building with ease, as it was nestled between two other museums and just in front of it was a strange, colorful sculpture that he did, in fact, enjoy. Just as Decans had told him. 

Speaking of Decans, the older teenager was standing just off to the side of the sculpture, right on time. 

“Decans!” Fresh greeted, voice still heavy from sleep and depression, a fake smile on his face. The kid just shrugged and started to lead them inside where a crowd had already begun to gather at the front doors. 

At exactly 10am, they were let in by museum staff, all of the patrons shuffling to queue in the ticket line. There were absolutely no children, and the youngest adults had a “student” vibe to them. Fresh felt wholly out of place, and like he needed to be taking pictures for his page, but decided today he would just enjoy the peace and serenity that was the New Home City Museum of Modern Art. 

They moved through the line quickly and in silence, paying separately and entering the museum through turnstiles. 

“Where d’ya want to start?” Fresh asked his companion. 

“Photography exhibit.” Decans answered, plucking a map from one of the displays and opening it. “Third floor…” 

“This way.” Fresh commanded with a grin, being the one to lead his friend this time.

They took the staircase, getting winded as they climbed but persevering through the trek to the upper most region of the museum. Tucked away into a separate gallery was the traveling photography exhibit Decans had been so eager to see. 

The two entered and Decans immediately began wandering the displays. Fresh stalked among them, brows furrowed. He didn’t really understand why the photographs were special enough to be hung in such a place of honor, but he wasn’t an artist and he allowed himself to not recognize the photographer’s creative genius. 

He found Decans staring at a particular snapshot, crouched down and face scrunched into a look of concentration. Fresh squatted down next to him, inspecting the picture as well. 

“I don’t get it.” Fresh admitted with a whisper. 

“It represents the lost innocence of the artist’s childhood.” Decans explained in hushed tones. 

“Are you interested in photography?” 

“...A bit. I guess I got interested after you asked me to help you out.” He shrugged before standing. Fresh could tell he didn’t want to talk much more. 

They spent most of their time at the museum in silence, Decans chiefly picking the exhibits they would be visiting, as Fresh didn’t find any of them terribly intriguing for himself. He did find the quiet atmosphere calming and realized that the hustle and bustle of the city had been grating on every one of his five senses.  

It was only when they stopped at the gift shop before leaving Decans spoke up. 

“You seem better.” He pointed out, not looking up from the postcards he was flipping through. 

“Yeah? I think I feel a lil better.” Fresh confirmed, grinning. “It’s real nice in here.” 

“I come here a lot… Usually when the city gets too much for me.” Decans admitted, finally looking up to meet Fresh’s gaze. “You know, because-” 

“I know.” 

“You seemed really down earlier…” Decans tried again, now moving on to a tower of magnets. “...” He frowned, hoping Fresh would know what he wanted to ask. 

“Ah, yeah.” Fresh’s smile fell a tiny bit. “I kind of… slammed the door in my brother’s fiance’s face.” 

The younger skeleton’s brows shot up and his eyes widened. 

“Shoot, Fresh, even  _ I  _ know that’s a donkey move, and I’m terrible at social cues.” 

“Yeah…” Fresh rubbed the back of his skull. “I really messed up, huh?” 

Decans simply nodded. 

“I should apologize.” 

Another nod. 

“But I don’t like him.” 

Decans frowned so deeply the facial expression almost etched itself into his bone structure. 

“But I don’t want to give him a chance, Decans! He’s…” 

Decans added a snarl to his grimace. 

“Ugh… You’re right. I don’t have to like him, but I have to give him a chance. Thanks.” Fresh sighed. 

“And?” 

“And I’ll apologize.” 

Decans gave him the faintest of smiles. 

 

* * *

 

Fresh decided he did enjoy his time with Decans. And not as an employee, as he had thought of him, but as a friend. Someone to spend time with. Decans had showed him a part of himself that must have been difficult. He shared a special place of significance Fresh had ended up enjoying, despite not being quite as knowledgeable about art as his friend was. 

Parting ways, he realized he had allowed someone to become closer to him that wasn’t one of his brothers. The only difficult part, for him, was finding the motivation to get out of bed that morning. 

He supposed it wouldn’t be all that different to give Ink a chance. 

But he had messed up. Big time. 

On the train ride home he ruminated on how he was going to apologize. He didn’t think a simple “I’m sorry.” would really do it this time. And when the idea struck him, he jumped out of his seat and rushed out the door for a stop that wasn’t his, only to return to his trip home a little over thirty minutes later, card in hand. 

As soon as he got to his building, he went up the elevator and down the hall to his brother’s door. He stared at the number, taking deep breaths, before beginning to knock in his signature rhythm. 

The theme song to “The Fresh Prince of Hotland.” 

The door swung open almost immediately, Ink staring up at him and Error moving up just behind him. 

“H-hi Fresh.” Ink greeted, smiling up at him with eye lights swirling frantically in their sockets. 

“What do you want?” Error growled, gritting his teeth. 

He was angry. 

Understandably. 

“I came to apologize.” Fresh started. Ink blinked and Error seemed to relax just a tiny bit. From his jacket pocket, the youngest brother took out the card. “I wanted to say sorry for how I acted on Friday. It wasn’t very rad of me. I…” He frowned, then handed Ink the envelope. 

“This is for you. A real apology.” 

Ink looked down, then back up. 

“Thanks, Fresh… Do you want to stay for dinner? We’re actually cooking?” He asked hopefully. 

Fresh shook his head. 

“Nah, I’m kind of tired… But I’ll come over soon. To play those games.” He grinned. 

Ink smiled. 

“Okay. Take care.” 

“Thanks, Fresh.” Error said slowly. His brother simply nodded and pulled away from the door, turning and walking back to his own place.  

Ink closed the door and turned back to his partner. 

“What’s in it?” Error asked, looking down at the envelope and hoping for something that would cheer Ink up. The poor guy had been down all weekend. 

“I dunno…” Ink tore the seal, shaking a gift card into his palm. He frowned. “It’s for that jewelry store…” 

He turned the card over. 

Scrawled in messy handwriting was the note: 

_ “For Ink’s ring.”  _

And below it was written an amount that would have bought Ink the nicest engagement ring in the city. 

“Woah.” He breathed. 

“Woah.” Error echoed. “Do you forgive him now?” 

“I would have forgiven him without the gift card.” Ink laughed. “Let’s go shopping tomorrow! I want to get my ring!” 

“We’ll go, just maybe not tomorrow…” 

“Why not?” 

“Because it’s Monday.” 

“Ah, shit.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross and Dream were supposed to go to the “Candy Shoppe” for their first date, but like many things I have planned, it got changed in the process. However, I truly wished for them to visit such a mystical land and now you have this. (The Candy Shoppe is based on a real place called Sugar Factory, if you so wish to see some pictures or check out the menu… Yes, the rainbow sliders are on it. ;) ) 
> 
> And WOW. Chapter 30? My favorite number is three, and that’s like, ten groups of three. (That’s a lot of three’s.) Thank you guys for sticking with me all this time! The word count is also now novel length, and who would have thought, all those months ago, that I had a book in me? I definitely wouldn’t have guessed it would be about skeletons, though.
> 
> Thank you! Each and every one of you! 
> 
> P.S. Yes, that is most certainly Strawberry!Nightmare. We all deserve a treat for getting to chapter 30, don't we?


	31. So Much For Tablecloths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, for better or worse, things are just meant to be.

Nightmare had been stuck. Stuck on trying to figure out a date to take Ccino on. He continuously assured the barista he was working on it, but the truth was, he had no clue. If only there were coffee bean farms nearby! He had checked, and unfortunately the closest one to them was located in another, more tropical country. He was growing restless, and certain Ccino was going to give up on him. 

“It doesn’t have to be something spectacular. Just make sure he has a good time.” Killer advised him while they were eating dinner at their apartment, Nightmare scowling the entirety of the meal until Killer forced him to say what was wrong. 

“He never goes anywhere. It needs to be somewhere worth going out for.” Nightmare grumbled in return. 

“If he doesn’t go anywhere, wouldn’t a fast food joint be good enough? Poor guy must be starving if he doesn’t even go out to get groceries.” 

“I’m serious, Killer!” Nightmare snarled. “I-I don’t want to disappoint him!” 

“I don’t think any date you took him on would disappoint him.” Killer sighed, moving to push his broccoli off his plate and onto the table. 

“Don’t you fucking dare.” Nightmare hissed, nearly stabbing his hand with his fork. Killer stopped his migration of green vegetables, if only to avoid losing a hand. 

“Why don’t I show you?” Killer asked, sighing. 

“Show me what?” 

“That you can have a good date anywhere. We haven’t even gone on a date since becoming official.” 

“We’ve been on dates.” 

“What dates?” 

“You know… Like to the movies during our first year… And to the food truck festival…” 

“You mean when we hung out as friends?” Killer arched an eyebrow. Nightmare seethed. “Okay, right now. Let’s go on a date.” 

“Right now?” Nightmare frowned in confusion. 

“Yeah, right now.” Killer grinned, standing. 

“We haven’t even finished eating.” Nightmare didn’t budge. 

“I’ve finished. It’s not my fault you’d rather brood than eat.” He held out a hand for his partner. “C’mon.” 

“We need to clean up…” Nightmare sank further into his seat. 

“It’ll be here when we get back. I promise.” Killer moved around and gently pulled him to his feet. “Will you do it for me?” 

Nightmare pouted, much a caricature of his brother’s famous one, then sighed. He wasn’t able to say ‘no’ when Killer looked so bright eyed and bushy tailed. Besides, they really  _ hadn’t _ technically gone on a date since coupling up. 

“Okay, but we can’t be gone too long. We  _ do  _ have to clean.” 

“Don’t worry. What I have planned won’t take long.” Killer assured. 

After they had tugged on their shoes and locked the door, they headed out of their apartment building and onto the street. Killer tentatively slid his hand into Nightmare’s, who softly blushed and looked away, fingers squeezing tightly around his boyfriend’s. 

“Where are we going?” Nightmare asked as Killer steered them down the sidewalk. 

“It’s a secret.” The taller student teased. “Don’t worry, it’s close by.” He added. 

Nightmare grumbled under his breath, but allowed himself to be shrouded in mystery Unfortunately, he could feel the pangs of excitement echoing in his rib cage and he tried to keep his face stoic and unmoving. His hand, however, was a little snitch and clung to Killer’s, every so often a finger twitching. 

“An ice cream shop?” Nightmare asked, stopping as they approached the small corner store. 

“Yeah. They make their own stuff. I’ve been wanting to try it out.” Killer grinned, looking back at him. 

“I don’t like sweets. You know that.” His date huffed.

“That’s a damn lie and we both know it.” Killer laughed. “Yeah, I’ve caught you sneaking some of my Swiss chocolate.” 

“...Well, you buy a lot of it.” Nightmare pouted, again, driving Killer mad. 

“Because you steal it.” Killer gently tugged on their hands. “Now come on, I’m hungry.” 

“That’s because you didn’t eat your broccoli.” Nightmare muttered, letting Killer pull him into the store. 

Thankfully it was a weeknight and there wasn’t much of a line, but unfortunately for Nightmare that didn’t leave him enough of a chance to peruse the flavors before they were at the counter to order. His eyes landed on the first flavor he saw, that he would probably like, deciding to order without trying it. He wasn’t necessarily ready for their date to be over, but he was ready to be out of this line and on with their evening. 

“How can I help you?” Asked the teen monster behind the counter, trying to sound perky despite their minimum wage summer employment situation. 

“Uh…” Nightmare started. “One scoop of green tea ice cream. Please.” 

“And what else?” Killer asked, grinning at him lazily. Nightmare frowned. 

“With some chocolate chips.” He mumbled. 

“And?” Killer urged. 

“Fudge.” Nightmare crossed his arms. 

“With?” 

“....” Nightmare glowered at him. “With marshmallow fluff…” 

“One scoop of green tea ice cream with chocolate chips, fudge, and marshmallow fluff?” The teenager asked. Nightmare nodded. “And you?” They asked, turning to the taller skeleton. 

“I’ll just have one scoop of vanilla with rainbow sprinkles.” He grinned. 

“Got it! Coming right up.” They said and moved to begin making their order. The duo moved down to the cash register, where the teen’s less perky coworker was waiting for them. 

He took Killer’s card and ran it through the machine without so much as a word to couple. 

“Here you go!” The first teen set their orders on the counter, giving them a smile before sauntering to help the next guests. The teen at the cash register simply sighed, wishing for the night to be over so he could go home. 

They gathered their ice cream and moved to one of the tiny round tables the ice cream shop had set out for their guests that was located in the back corner. 

“See? It’s not so hard letting yourself like something.” Killer grinned after they had sat down and started eating. 

“But I  _ don’t  _ like sweets.” Nightmare grumbled. 

“I think that pile of sugar would argue otherwise.” Killer laughed, watching his boyfriend shovel it into his mouth. “You should slow down there. You’ll get a-” 

“Brain freeze…” Nightmare moaned, clutching his skull. Killer chuckled, then leaned across the table. 

“Here, let me help…” He said and before the other could protest, kissed him and slid his tongue into Nightmare’s mouth, rubbing it against the roof of his mouth, warming his soft palate. The smaller skeleton made noises of protest, though he didn’t push him away, and Killer took that as encouragement to continue twisting his tongue around the other’s. The coldness of their tongues mixed with the contrasting warmth of their mouths and breaths sent a shiver down Killer’s spine.

Nightmare finally pulled back, gasping and face almost completely violet. 

“Killer! There’s people watching!” He snapped, wiping off his mouth with the back of his hand. Killer just grinned. 

“Worth it. You look adorable.” He wanted to do it again, just to piss Nightmare off even more. He was so cute when he was mad… Probably why Killer was always leaving messes out for him to find, just so he could get yelled at. Perhaps is was a bit masochistic of him, but he didn’t quite care enough to change. 

“Shut up.” Nightmare frowned. 

“Make me.” 

That only earned the student a scowl from the other, whose blush was unfortunately beginning to dissipate. 

“Give me some of your ice cream.” Killer gently demanded. Nightmare’s frown deepened, but he held out his paper cup to the other. “No, feed me. Please. I forgot how.” 

Nightmare rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. 

“You’re kind of an idiot, you know that, right?” He asked, scooping some of the last of his ice cream onto his spoon and holding it out. Killer quickly swooped down on the plastic utensil, pulling the ice cream off with his teeth. 

“This is kind of gross, Nightmare.” His face scrunched at the unholy mixture of flavors. 

“I think it’s good.” 

“You have bad taste… I guess that’s why you’re dating me.” 

“That would make sense, actually.” Nightmare shrugged and smiled ever so softly. Killer could have fainted. Or crawled over the table and wrapped himself like a protective snake around the other, keeping his smile all to himself. He couldn’t now, but when they got home… Anything was possible. 

“Makes a lot of sense.” Killer agreed, finishing his own ice cream. “Ready to go?” 

“Yeah… You ate the last of mine… then called it gross.” Nightmare wrinkled his brows together and pushed his seat back, standing. 

“Shouldn’t have given it to me then.” Killer shrugged and plucked Nightmare’s empty cup out of his hands and went to the trash can, throwing both of theirs away. When he rejoined his boyfriend, he slipped his arm around his shoulders, pulling him in and tucking him neatly into his side. 

“You’re an ass.” Nightmare crossed his arms once more. 

“I thought I was an idiot?” Killer led them out and back into the night air, the atmosphere refreshing after being stuck under the fluorescent lights and having the droning sound of freezers in the background. 

“You can be both.” Nightmare noted before giving in to his own desires and unfolding his arms, snaking one around Killer’s waist as they walked back to their apartment. 

“Did you like it? Our date?” Killer asked, glancing back down at him. 

“Uh… Yeah. I guess I did.” Nightmare smiled again. “It was fun… Even if you called my ice cream gross.” 

“Good.” Killer hummed. “Do you feel better about going on a date with Ccino?” 

“Yeah. I still need to figure something out… I know it doesn’t have to be amazing, but I want him to enjoy himself.” 

“You’ll find something. I’m sure he’d like whatever you have planned, so long as he gets to spend time with you.” 

“...I don’t know if he likes me that much, yet.” 

“He will... “ Killer bent down and gently nuzzled Nightmare’s temple. “If he doesn’t already.” 

“How can you be so sure?” Nightmare pouted. 

“Who can resist you?” Killer grinned, then kissed him once more. “See? I can barely hold back right now.” 

He was rewarded with a laugh from the smaller. 

“You’re so weird… But I love you anyway.” Nightmare smiled up at him. 

“That’s good, because I love you too.” 

Nightmare grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled him down again, pressing his hot mouth onto his lover’s. 

When they parted, Killer grinned down at him. 

“There are people around, you know?” 

“I know, and I don’t care.” Nightmare smirked. “Now let’s go home. There’s dishes to do.” 

“There’s other stuff to do, too… Y’know, like yo-” 

“Dishes… First.” 

“Yes sir.” 

 

* * *

 

It was another long day of work, and it was only half over by the time the interns showed up for one of their weekly bouts of pretending to be an art gallery employee while getting something nice to put on their college applications. But Ink was filled to the brim with energy, knowing tonight he and Error were going to dinner with the Gasters. The restaurant was a bit more posh than the two were used to eating at, but their inviters promised to foot the bill. It was a celebration, after all. 

So when Template ceased babbling about art nouveau, Ink lost himself in watching and thinking about Template’s cohort, who always followed Chara’s instructions closely and accurately. He was much more of a burgeoning art gallery manager than Template or even Ink could ever hope to be. It was probably best Chara and Ink had switched charges. Chara probably would have been driven to insanity with Template, and Pale the same with Ink. 

But watching Pale, Ink was caught off-guard by his realization that the teenager was, for lack of a better term, emotionless. 

“Why does he act like that?” Ink asked Template in a harsh whisper, cutting him off from his rant. 

“Who? Acts like what?” Template asked once he had recovered from his initial confusion. 

“Pale…” Ink frowned to himself. “He acts… strangely.” 

“Oohhh…” Template nodded. “You mean the frowny frown McFrown face.” 

“The frowny… never mind. Yeah, I mean that.” 

Template glanced around, noticing there weren’t many customers at the moment. 

“Could we take our break? It’s not something I’m really comfortable talking about out in the open…” Template grimaced slightly. Ink nodded and led them back down to the break room.

“Is it that bad? You don’t have to tell me if it is.” Ink assured him. 

“It’s not bad… really.” Template sighed slightly and Ink took a moment to note this was the most serious he had seen the art student. “It’s just a little embarrassing…” 

“Uh… okay…” Ink leaned on his desk while Template took a seat in one of the chairs, spinning a few times to calm himself down before he was able to steel himself enough to begin the story. 

“So…” He took a deep breath. “Me and Pale have been friends basically since we were born… Of course, I’m older by three months though so…” he laughed softly. “Our parents were best friends in college, so we became friends by proxy…” 

Ink nodded, trying his best to keep his attention solely on his intern. Luckily for him, he was just interested enough that his concentration was holding on by the fingernails. 

“...” Template frowned, spinning around in the chair for one more revolution as he gathered his strength. “About a year ago his parents separated, and then like… six months ago they divorced. He’s been pretty out of it since… he used to act like a normal person, but when that happened he kind of cut everyone and everything out. Except me. But even I messed that up.” 

“You messed up?” Ink gently leaned back. “How?” 

Template’s cheeks colored. 

“OkbutIdidn’tknow!! Howareyousupposedtoreactwhenyourbestfriendtellsyouhe’sinlovewithyoubutyouthinkhe’sjusthavingahardtimeandsinceyou’vebeenthereforhimhethinksofyouasmore?!” He cried, burying his face in his hands. 

Ink blinked, eye lights cycling rapidly as his brain moved into high gear to dissect Template’s muddled speech. 

“So he told you he likes you?” Ink asked once he had successfully processed the information. 

“Yeah! But not just like, I mean  _ like like.  _ Like… romantically.” Template whined.

“Yeah, yeah…” Ink nodded. “I get it. It’s good though you told him you couldn’t be with him if you don’t like him back. Trust me, it’s just not gonna turn out well for you if you force yourself into a relationship and-“ 

“That’s the problem though! I DO like him!” Template wailed, and Ink was almost certain he heard a sob in there. 

“Oh.” Ink said simply. 

“Yeah, ‘oh’…” Template pulled his hands away from his face, but Ink saw no signs of the tears he had been certain the other had. He did see deep frustration, and even sadness, etched into the teen’s face. “We’re still friends, of course, but…” 

“But you want to be more?” 

“I want him to not be so sad!” Template cried. “I didn’t mean to make it  _ worse.  _ I guess I just kind of dismissed his feelings because what if he was only feeling things for me because I was the only person he could count on? But then, what if he wasn’t and I ruined any potential between us?” 

“You’re still friends, right?” Ink asked tentatively. 

“Technically, yeah. But he hasn’t been the same towards me.” 

“It kinda sounds like he just hasn’t been the same in general…” Ink frowned thoughtfully. “I’m sure you brushing off his feelings like a speck of dirt didn’t help.” 

“You think  _ he _ thinks I brushed it off like a speck of dirt?!” Template shot from his seat and began pacing around the room. “Oh no, I messed up… I fudged up… I fudged up real bad.” 

“You can say ‘fuck’ around me.” 

“I can’t believe I fudged up!” Template cried, either having ignored Ink or having forgotten he was even in the same room for the moment. “I gotta go tell him. I gotta go say something. I gotta-” 

“Woah!” Ink quickly blocked the entrance (and exit) to the basement. “You’re not going anywhere, pal. Not in that state. Sit down.” 

Template sat obediently back in the chair, this time not giving it a twirl to calm himself down. Instead, he kept his eyes steady on Ink as the other approached. 

“You didn’t mess anything up irreparably. He obviously still cares about you, or he wouldn’t be here working with you, or still be your friend. You just need to think about your feelings, and then talk to him about it. You’ll figure it out. You’re a smart kid.” Ink gave him a soft smile. 

“You think I’m smart?” Template balked. Ink blinked at him. 

“Yeah? Why-” 

“Ink?” Chara poked her head in from the stairs. “You two better get back out here and help us close up. Someone’s waiting for you and he’s going to be pretty peeved if it takes too long.” 

Ink’s countenance immediately changed to one of blissful delight. 

“He’s here!” He cried, moving towards the steps. “C’mon Template! There’s someone I want you to meet.” 

 

* * *

 

Error hadn’t been in a staring contest since the last time he was drunk. 

And that certainly didn’t even count seeing as how he barely focus on one of Cross’s four eyes. 

But here he was, staring down at a teenager while he stared up at him. Chara had barely introduced them to one another before moving off to collect Ink and his intern- who, Error admitted to himself, he was way too excited to meet. Ink had created a real portrait of what this kid was like just from the stories he brought home. 

“So.” He stated. 

Pale continued to look up at him, not even allowing himself to blink. 

“Okay…” Error muttered, finally breaking eye contact and trying to focus on anything other than the teenager. 

“ERROR!” 

He turned just in time to have Ink rush into arms, nuzzling his chest softly. 

“It’s like you haven’t seen me in days.” Error mused, gently rubbing the top of Ink’s skull, then bending down and pressing his mouth to the artist’s forehead. Ink grinned and pulled back. 

“It feels like I haven’t seen you in days.” He agreed, turning to their audience. “I see you’ve met Pale. Now you get to meet my intern, probably the best intern in the universe.” Ink laughed before gesturing to him. “This is Template! Template, this is Error, my fiance.” 

Template frowned slightly, staring at Error while blinking, then grinned. 

“You’ve got the same thing I’ve got!” He pointed at himself, particularly at his cheeks and their signature markings. 

“Yeah. Error-syndrome.” Error gave him a small grin of his own. “Ink told me you had it. It’s not so bad.” Template shook his head in agreement. 

“Nope! Except for the bullies.” He frowned slightly, then went back to grinning. “Ink, why didn’t you tell me he was cool?! Now I’ll pretend like he exists!” 

Error held back a laugh. 

“I did tell you, Temp.” Ink laughed. “I guess you forgot.” 

“Yeah, that happens sometimes.” Template shrugged, then threw an arm around Pale’s shoulder. “Isn’t he cool, Pale? He’s cool enough for Ink.” 

“But Ink’s not cool enough for him… I think I’ll try to get them to break up so Error can marry me.” Pale said monotone. 

“...You realize you’re over ten years apart, right?” Chara started slowly. 

“Age shouldn’t stop him! Dream’s brother is going after a guy with an age difference bigger than ten years! True love doesn’t know!” Ink grinned. 

“And  _ you _ realize he said he was going to steal me from you, right?” Error frowned. 

“Oh. Right.” Ink laughed. “Error, help me close up so we can go ring shopping. Come on, come on.” 

“What? No. You’re the one getting paid for that, plus you have children to help you out.” 

“They’re teenagers, not children!” Chara huffed. 

While the others were distracted, Template turned to his friend, trying not to let his complete horror and abject anguish show on his face. He smiled. 

“So… You like him?” He asked tentatively. 

“Yeah.” Pale turned back to him. “We had a moment before you got up here. This way, you can have Ink and I can have Error.” 

And then, Pale showed him the tiniest of smiles. 

Template didn’t have it in him to say anything to the contrary. 

 

* * *

 

Ring shopping with Ink was worse than what clothes shopping had been with Chara. While Chara would at least stay still for a few minutes while she weighed her options, Ink ran all over the multi-level jewelry store they had stopped at on their way to dinner. Error tried multiple times to get him to stay put in one place long enough for them to at least flag someone down so Ink could try on some of the ones he liked, but the small ball of energy wasn’t having it and instead bounced all over the place. 

“Look, Error!” He cried, dragging him across the second floor. “This one’s got citrine, and that one’s got a fire opal!” 

“I see it-“ Before Error could say more, he was tugged to another display case, cursing the entire way. 

“Look at the size of the onyx in that one!” 

“Ink,” 

“And the turquoise in that!” 

“Ink.” 

“That ruby reminds me of that one kid’s movie, where the monkey picks up a ruby egg that’s bigger than himself?” 

“Ink!” Error fumed. The artist blinked. 

“What?” 

“You need to calm down and actually look at them. Not just run off every time you see something shiny. We’re here so you can actually pick one out and buy it.” Error calmly explained. 

“Oh, I know. I already picked one out.” Ink grinned. 

“You what?” 

“I’ve been looking online for days now. I even called ahead to see if they could have it ready for when we came.” 

Error stared at him for a good long moment before letting out a sighing laugh. 

“Wow, sometimes you really surprise me. I didn’t think you would be so proactive.” 

“I was just really excited this time.” Ink grinned and checked his watch. “We should probably go find it, since we should leave for the restaurant soon.” 

 

* * *

 

After finding an associate to help them, then being directed to the associate manager who had taken Ink’s call in the first place, Ink decided that yes, this was indeed the one ring to rule over his left ring finger for the rest of eternity. But unfortunately for him, it wasn’t in the right size and the store was going to have to get it resized before it could go home with him. That was the thing about skeleton fingers: they weren’t fleshy like the rest of the population’s, and rings would need to be closer to the size of a child’s than an adult’s. Even though he pouted about it, Ink couldn’t stay upset for too much longer. 

Hand in hand, they were off to the restaurant to meet the Gasters. 

It wasn’t a long walk from where they had been; just a few blocks. Ink was giddy at the thought of Error finally being able to meet them, and Error, on the opposite end of the spectrum, was a cool bundle of nerves. Ink had no parents or family to speak of for him to meet, and these two older men were the closest thing to it. He kept checking his phone and texting. 

“Who’s that?” Ink asked after Error pulled out his phone for the millionth time. 

“Cross. He’s sending me stupid pictures…” He grumbled, letting out a shuddering breath. “Trying to calm me down.” 

“This is going to be fun!” Ink assured him as they stopped outside the restaurant and he brought out his phone to check and see if their companions were there yet. “You’ll finally know why I like them so much. And they’ve been dying to meet you.” 

“Meet me?” Error sighed, rubbing the back of his skull. Ink had told him several times that the Gasters wanted to meet him, he just didn’t see the reason for their eagerness. He was nothing special, and quite honestly, Ink really did outshine him in every possible way. 

Ink turned to him, still grinning. 

“You’re not nervous, are you?” 

“Of course not.” Error snapped. 

“You are, or you wouldn’t look so grumpy.” Ink slowly reached up and patted his fiance’s cheek. “Look, they’re nice and it’s not like you have to get their approval. No matter how much I want them to be, they’re not my actual parents. Even then, I was the one who asked you to marry me, so they can’t really say anything about you stealing me away. I stole you.” 

Error laughed. 

“You can’t even pick me up. How would you steal me away?” Despite his joke, the taller skeleton did feel a tiny bit better. Ink frowned slightly, then wrapped his arms around Error’s hips and began trying to lift him off the ground.

“I’m gonna… steal… you…” Ink strained while Error chuckled, letting him continue to work on hurting his back while everyone else on the sidewalk looked on. 

“Is this a bad time?” A familiar, warm and somewhat posh voice asked and Ink immediately released his bounty, turning and grinning up at the two tall skeletons while Error stumbled backwards. 

“Nope!” He said happily, moving to hug each of them separately. “I was just showing Error that I could steal him away.” 

“He wasn’t getting very far.” Error noted, then held out his hand. “I’m Error. It’s nice to meet you.” 

Each of them shook his hand in turn while simultaneously introducing themselves. 

“Aster.” 

“I’m Gaster.” 

“It’s nice to meet you. Ink talks about you a lot.” Error grinned. 

“Only good things, I hope.” Aster laughed. 

“Always good things!” Ink chimed. 

“Shall we go in? Our table should be ready.” Gaster motioned for the others to follow him. 

Once inside and after Aster spoke with the hostess, they were led to one of the fancier tables in the back, a nice round one with a purple tablecloth and a few bottles of wine already set out on ice. 

“We know you don’t drink, Ink, so they’re non-alcoholic.” Aster explained, pulling out a chair for his husband who simply chuckled and sat, then pushed his partner’s chair out for him. Error awkwardly moved to the side and pulled Ink’s chair out for him just as Ink moved to Error’s chair. 

“Er…” Error frowned, staring at his partner. “Here you go…” He motioned for Ink to sit down. 

“No, you go first.” Ink grinned, nodding toward the chair whose back was gripped in his hands. 

“No you, dear.” Error strained. 

“You, sweetie.” Ink could feel pure amusement bubbling up inside his chest just by Error’s clearly pained and frustrated face and need to make himself look better in front of the other pair. 

“Fine.” Error had finally had enough and simply moved around the chair meant for Ink and plopped himself down in it. Ink snorted and quickly pushed him in. 

“Anything for my darling baby.” He singsonged before sitting down next to his partner, scooting his chair up to the table himself. The Gasters watched, clearly amused with small smirks etched into their faces. 

Once they had all settled in and Aster poured them each a glass of white, not-quite wine, and they let the topic of conversation flow and ebb as the conversationalists so wished. The Gasters wanted to know everything about Error, what his job was (though Ink had told them), what his aspirations in life were, what his brothers were like. That was, until they hit the inevitable subject of family planning. 

“And,” Ink began, “Someday, we’re gonna adopt at least one kid, right Error?” 

Error sighed, but smiled softly and almost timidly, as if the mere thought of the reality of being a father delighted him in a vulnerable way he wasn’t used to. 

“Right… Not before we’re married, and certainly not before we can afford to live in an actual house and not in the middle of the city.” 

“He just wants room to play baseball with the kids.” Ink laughed, though having a house to call his own was a nice fantasy as well. 

“You both are so lucky.” Gaster started, tentatively. “When we were… first married, it was still illegal for same sex couples to adopt children.” 

Aster smiled sadly. 

“It’s been one of our greatest regrets… When they made it legal, we were already much too old, too tired, to take in any children.” He sat back, meeting Gaster’s stare and nodding. 

It was time. 

“Which is part of why we asked you here today.” He continued. 

“It’s extremely unconventional, but we both feel it’s right.” Gaster covered Aster’s hand with his own, giving him a small smile before they both zeroed in on Ink. 

Ink squirmed under their gaze, eye lights swirling in his sockets, a dozen shapes forming and releasing over the span of just a few seconds. Error turned his head slightly, watching Ink out of the corner of his eye. He was trying to act as if he were ignorant to the whole ordeal. Like the Gasters hadn’t begged Chara for his phone number weeks ago, and he hadn’t been texting them the entire night in preparation for this single moment. 

“Ink, we know we haven’t really known you for very long, but, if we had to think of someone we would have loved to have in our lives, as a child…” Aster took a deep, steadying breath. 

“What we’re trying to say… No, ask, is…” Gaster grinned. 

“Ink, we’d like to adopt you. If you want, that is.” 

Ink threw right up onto the pretty tablecloth.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A cliffhanger in TTC? 
> 
> It's more likely than you think. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this plot point I was dying to get to. It was supposed to be something special for chapter 30, but I didn't want to rush it, so we have it now. c:


	32. Ready Or Not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ink tells the Gasters his answer, and Error has a sudden realization.

Ink hadn’t been able to give an answer right away. Right away, he shot out of his seat, gave a shake of his head to Error, signaling for him not to follow, and raced off to the bathroom to clean himself up. Meanwhile, his dinner companions helped their waitress relocate their things to another, unspoiled table. Error had to assure the Gasters Ink had just been overwhelmed.

“He did that when he thought I’d be moving away for work, too.” Error relayed, sitting down at their new table while glancing over his shoulder at the men’s bathroom warily. He could only hope Ink had been overwhelmed from being so elated.

“Should we go check on him? He’s been in there a while.” Gaster frowned, looking towards his husband. Error sighed heavily before standing up.

“I’ll go. I’m sure he’s just…” Error frowned. “I’m sure he’s just being him right now.”

He turned and stalked to the bathroom, tentatively opening the door and peeking into the room.

“Ink?” He called, not seeing any sign of his fiancé at the sinks or the hand dryers. He walked further in, eyes continuing their search. Droplets of black ink led him to a locked stall, where he could see someone was kneeling on the floor inside. Ink must have had another bout of emotional nausea. He rapped his knuckles on the door. “Ink?”

“Error?” Ink’s voice was strained but hopeful.

“The one and only. Unlock this so I can come in.”

Ink slowly rose to his feet and twisted the lock, allowing his most significant other into the stall.

“Oh, you got it on yourself.” Error grimaced, looking at the dribbles that had fallen from the corners of Ink’s mouth onto the breast of his shirt.

“I look that bad, huh?” Ink turned back around and flushed the toilet, motioning for Error to move out of the way so he could leave the stall. Once out, he went to the sinks and turned one of the faucets onto cold, splashing his face with the water.

“Not _that_ bad. But definitely not like you just got asked if you wanted to be adopted.” Error crossed his arms. “Are you excited?”

Ink laughed tiredly.

“I’m over the moon, Error. But I just threw up a lot so I’m a little shaken.” He began slurping palmfuls of water into his mouth, swishing the liquid around before spitting it out.

“Good, because I kind of told them you’d love to have them as parents, and I didn’t want to end up looking like a liar.”

Ink scowled at him in the mirror.

“You were in on it?” He asked.

“They kind of wanted to test the waters on how you’d react. They didn’t want to get their hopes up of adopting you and you thinking it was weird, or terrible, or that you didn’t even think of them that way.”

“…That’s fair, I guess.” Ink stood up straight. “I think I’m ready to go back.”

“What are you going to tell them?”

“Hm…” Ink winked at him. “You kept this from me, I’ll keep my answer from you.”

Error frowned, disgruntled and mumbling as they both exited the bathroom and headed towards their table. The two elderly lovebirds looked up, their eyes shining with worry, care, and trepidation as the others approached. Ink took a deep breath and tried to smile for them. After he and Error were seated, the Gasters turned to him.

“How are you feeling?” Aster asked, though it was obvious by the look in his eyes this wasn’t the real question he wanted to be asking.

“Much better… Sorry, for that. It happens when my emotions get overwhelming… And boy, was that overwhelming.” Ink laughed softly.

“We’re glad you’re feeling better.” Gaster grinned, disquiet still tugging at the edges of his eyes.

“Thanks.” Ink smiled, then took a deep breath. “Yes.”

“Yes?” Aster asked, a bit taken off his equilibrium.

“Okay.” Ink smiled and nodded.

“Ink, you gotta actually tell them what you’re saying yes to.” Error sighed, rubbing his temple.

“Oh.” Ink laughed. “Yes, I’ll be… I will… I…” Bile threatened to make its way up from his stomach once again, but he swallowed it down. “I’ll be your son.”

Both of the old skeletons’ faces brightened, and tears glimmered in the corner of their eyes.

“W-we’re really happy...” Aster began.

“…To hear that.” Gaster finished.

Ink simply stared at them, grinning. Error nudged him with his elbow.

“Go over there and hug them or something.” He hissed out of the corner of his mouth. “They’re your dads, after all.”

Ink needed no more encouragement, springing from his chair and making his way around the table at an almost breakneck speed, flinging himself into his parents’ waiting arms.

“Dad!” He cried, “And dad!”

“Son!” Aster and Gaster both flung their arms around him, pulling him close and holding him tenderly, as if he were just a newborn baby bones, and in a way, he was.

Error made sure to snap a picture with his phone, a smile creeping onto his own face as well. What was it like to go your whole (known) life without having a family of your own, and to suddenly fall into one? He wasn’t able to fathom it, but the look on Ink’s face was all he needed to catch a glimpse. The pure, unadulterated bliss etched into Ink’s skull, at that moment, was something the other skeleton would never forget. To fit so neatly under the arms of your parents, held like a precious treasure and gazed upon as if you were the only thing that mattered…

It was the most perfect image Error would ever have in his life.

It took the breath from him. He was happy for Ink, yes, but what hit him more was the realization that someday he may, as well, hold something so precious as his own child, and the thought nearly brought him to his knees. Even after Ink had come back around the table and they resumed their dinner, as a family, the knot in Error’s stomach never once loosened. He blamed his hazy vision on the dim lighting of the restaurant, but in reality, he and his dinner mates were all basking in the glow of what it meant to become a family.

Through the main course and dessert, Error performed his role admirably. He said the right things and did the right things (even if he used the wrong fork for his salad), but his mind was elsewhere. He had never thought of himself as a father type, even after he had told Ink they could have children. (He had really been hoping that future him would be ready when the time came.) Now he knew the weight of being a parent, and just how heavy the weight of wanting to be a parent could be. He and Ink wouldn’t wait as long as the Gasters had been forced to.

He might never be ready, but he knew the right time would come, ready or not.

After parting ways for the night, Ink giving teary-eyed hugs to his new parents and Error giving them sturdy handshakes, they walked to the train station, hand in hand, Ink swinging their linked hands ever so slightly.

“How does it feel?” Error asked, his vision slowly beginning to clear now that he wasn’t so overwhelmed with Ink’s happiness.

“How does what feel?” Ink asked, looking up at him.

“How does it feel to have parents?”

“…” Ink smiled and looked away, thinking. “Weird. I thought I just… wouldn’t have parents. Once you hit like… ten years old your chance of getting adopted is slim to none… Who would have thought I’d beat all the odds and get adopted in my twenties?” He laughed. “But… it feels good, really good. I can’t believe I haven’t thrown up again.”

Error unlinked their hands and slipped his arm around Ink’s shoulders, pulling him into his side, not being able to stand the distance that been between them. Not after his revelation at dinner.

“It’s good you haven’t… Wouldn’t want your dads to think you’re a puking machine.” Error teased. Ink frowned.

“Me puking is your fault. You could have warned me that they were going to ask.”

“And ruin the fun? There’s no way in _hell_ I’d do that.” Error smirked down at him.

“…” Ink sighed, then laughed. “I guess you’re right. It _was_ more fun being a surprise.”  

They had spoken at length with the Gasters over dinner about the logistics of an adult adoption, and it seemed the most pressing requirement of bringing Ink into their family was going to be setting up a court date to get their papers official. So long as the adult agreed to be adopted, there wasn’t much work for anyone else to do. It may take them months to get in, but that would just be making it legally official. For all intents and purposes, Ink was already the Gasters’ son.

“I’m a little sad,” Ink began to admit. “I missed out on all the usual stuff kids do with their parents. Like going to the zoo or waking them up on Christmas morning so we can open presents.”

“Gaster and Aster missed out on it too, you know?” Error tried to smile reassuringly. “You’ll just have to make new memories with them.”

Ink laughed once more.

“You’re right, again. Don’t get used to it, though.”

 

* * *

 

When the two got home to their apartment, Ink sprinted off to his studio to begin making phone calls to his best friends. He wanted to relay the news to them as soon as he could, seeing as every Christmas each of them would put ‘I hope Ink gets adopted’ as their wish on the school’s supposedly non-denominational tree.

Error, on the other hand, stripped himself of his suit jacket and unknotted his tie so that it hung around his neck like a limp snake and pulled out the laptop he had barely touched since graduating. He frowned, eyebrows furrowing together as he stared at the Undernet homepage. Heaving a sigh, he clicked ‘Create an Account’ and went about inputting his sacred personal information, along with adding a picture of him and Ink as his one and only picture.

He didn’t waste any time adding people he may know or searching for them. Instead, he went straight to the search bar and began looking up groups.

He scrolled almost endlessly, none of the groups fitting quite what he needed. He tried a different search term, grinding his teeth in anticipation and with a hint of oncoming frustration. And then, he found it.

_Support Group for Adoptive or Adopting Dads_

After glancing at the description and the rules he clicked ‘Join’ and input the passphrase that had been hidden within the rules. He tried not to roll his eyes, but he supposed it was better than just letting anyone who wanted to join in. He closed the laptop just as Ink came barreling into the living room.

“ERROR!” The artist cried, his cell phone still clutched to the side of his head.

“What?” The other grumbled.

“Do you wanna go to the beach for King’s Weekend?”

Error frowned.

“Who are you talking to?”

“Dream.” Ink smiled. “I wasn’t really listening, but he said something about Cross had a plan, but that fell through because Cross is an idiot-“

“Straight facts.”

“But now they have a cabin by the beach open for that weekend. They already invited Chara and Blue, so they’re just waiting for us.” Ink finished.

“Fine. Whatever you want to do.” Error sighed, sinking further into his seat.

“Sweet!” Ink grinned. “We’re going to the beach!” He mumbled something else to Dream before wandering back to his art room, leaving Error alone once more.

He pulled out the laptop again and saw he had a notification on Undernet.

His request to join the group had been approved.

He smiled to himself.

He might not feel ready for fatherhood, but maybe this would be him feel just a bit closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is a bit short! For most of the day yesterday, I thought it was Monday.Then I realized it was Tuesday and... Well, just didn't have enough time to write more without losing what little sanity I have left. Moral of the story: Stop procrastinating and work on the chapter during the entire week I give myself for updates. 
> 
> As always, thanks for reading!!


	33. For The Best

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we catch up with Ccino and Nightmare, and Reaper.

Nightmare had researched, and researched, on what exactly he and Ccino could do for their first date. And with Killer’s help, he was less anxious about it needing to be the most perfect first date in the history of dates. However, he still wished it to be something better than a stereotypical run to the movies. (Truly, Dream could do better than Cross, who didn’t seem to be too creative.) When he had finally settled on something, he left his apartment and headed to his favorite coffee shop in the entire city. 

“Hey, Nightmare.” Ccino greeted him warmly as he came in the door, a small bell chiming. 

“Hey.” Nightmare glanced around the cafe, noting how few customers there were lounging about. Perhaps it was the warm weather that drove the patrons outside, rather than relaxing amongst the tables and leather couches Ccino provided them with. It didn’t matter to him. It meant he could have Ccino to himself. 

He moved to the counter, slipping behind it and beginning to make himself a simple, iced black coffee. Ccino leaned against the counter, tilting his head as he watched him. 

“You know you don’t have to come here everyday if you want to talk to me. You have my number.” He mused, watching the smaller skeleton take a tentative sip. 

“I know… But I like  _ seeing  _ you.” Nightmare sighed as the refreshing bitter liquid hit his tongue. Ccino’s cheeks heated and he turned back around, trying to busy himself with rearranging the tip jar on the counter. “I figured out a date for us to go on.” 

“Oh? Really?” Ccino asked, moving to look at him again, hoping his cheeks had cooled down enough that Nightmare wouldn’t notice the blush. 

“A hike.” Nightmare proposed, his mouth still set in a frown, but his eyes showing apprehension and vulnerability as he waited for Ccino’s reaction. 

“A hike?” Ccino asked but before Nightmare could affirm he added, “Sounds great.” 

Nightmare blinked a few times. 

“Really? You’re okay with that?” 

“Yeah!” Ccino laughed. “It’d be nice to get out of the city. We can even pack lunches and eat them somewhere on the trail… You know what? I’ll take care of the lunches. It’ll be fun.”

Nightmare scowled, then nodded. Ccino laughed again. 

“What’s with that face, Night? You don’t like the idea?” 

“I wanted to take care of everything.” He grumbled, earning another chuckle from the barista. 

“You don’t have to, you know? It’ll be fun for me to prepare the food. Don’t worry so much about it.” 

Nightmare’s frown deepened just enough so he was pouting. 

“Okay, fine…” He sighed, finally moving to go back around the counter and find himself a seat so he could write a bit of poetry. At the last moment, Ccino gently grabbed his arm and stopped him, bending down to give him a soft kiss on the cheek. 

“Thanks, Nightmare…” He murmured before pulling away. “I’ll make sure to pack us something delicious.” 

That earned him a small laugh, and the whisper of a smile from Nightmare. 

“I can’t wait.” 

 

* * *

 

Reaper was at his wit’s end. 

His wit’s end with Geno, specifically. 

They had gone on their first date, where he and Geno had partaken in pleasant conversation and grew closer… 

But they had never gone on a second date.    


At first, Reaper took Geno’s excuses at face value. Error’s graduation had been coming up and the young pediatrician really had needed to work different shifts so he could get off for the momentous occasion. But after that? Reaper was fed with a steady diet of excuses. First is that Fresh was being a little (or big, in his case) asshole about Error’s engagement, then Geno was just too tired from dealing with the stresses of work and home life to go out and wanted to use his days off to recuperate. 

The worst was when Reaper went to see him at work. 

Geno was cold and harsh, snapping at him when he even ventured so much as to have a lilt of affection in his voice. 

A man could only take so much. 

It ate at Reaper, this feeling of rejection and dislike he was given from the person he was enamored with. He wasn’t the kind of guy to really share his feelings, and he certainly wasn’t going to bring it up to Geno. What could he say? They weren’t even dating. He needed to take the hints, he supposed, but his poor soul wanted what it wanted and he was a complete and utter fool for it. 

It was almost as if Fate herself were watching out for him, because during one of his personal, lonely laments he received a text from one of his classmates from medical school. She wanted to invite him out to lunch one day to catch up on their lives. Hers had finally calmed down after a lengthy divorce with her now ex-husband and adjusting to single motherhood, she explained. Plus, it had been a while since they had really spoken. So Reaper agreed, wanting to hear about her trials and tribulations, and hoping to get some off his own chest as well.

So when the designated day came, he clocked out a bit early from work and called a taxi to take him to the little cafe she had proposed. It was an adorable hole-in-the-wall type of place, almost in the middle of one of the few neighborhoods in the city with ivy crawling up its outer walls. There was a patio with umbrellas and heavy wooden tables and chairs. He could already spot her at one of them, her back turned towards him and he grinned, moving into the restaurant and following directions to the patio. 

“Life.” He greeted gently, grinning as he came around to the other side of the table, fully in view of her now. 

The goat monster’s mouth tilted up in a smile of her own and she stood, bringing him into a warm embrace. 

“Reaper!” She cried happily, letting him go so they could both sit down again. 

“How’s my favorite mother doing?” He asked her, lazy grin finding its way easily onto his face. It had been hard to come by these days, but he was glad to find it making its way back. Life laughed again. 

“Oh, you know… Busy, tired… It’s not easy raising three kids mostly on your own.” She sighed and took a sip of her water. 

“Asgore’s not around much anymore?” 

“He’s around  _ too much.  _ He wants it to be like when we were married. For all his faults, at least he loves the children.” 

“How are you doing? Divorce isn’t easy.” 

“Well…” She frowned. “It was a long time coming… Honestly… I feel relieved. It’s better to be alone than in a one-sided marriage. It’s so exhausting… being the only one putting any effort into things.” 

Reaper blinked. 

“I thought you were the one who drifted away?” He asked. Life laughed bitterly. 

“Only after he stopped trying. I was always begging just for an ounce of attention. Maybe one night with just the two of us each week… But he would always brush me aside. I felt unimportant. As if the only good that ever came from me was the kids. It’s hard, Reaper. To only be cared for when it’s convenient for the other person.” 

“...I think I know the feeling…” He murmured, looking down at the table cloth. She smiled sadly at him. 

“The pediatrician?” 

“The pediatrician.” 

“Listen, Reaper,” She began. “Life is much too short, and much too hard, to spend your energy on someone who doesn’t want you.” 

“But you’re very tall, and quite soft.” Reaper joked, though her words stung. She laughed. 

“You know what I mean. Please let my experience help you. In any way it can.” 

“I’ll think about it.” 

* * *

 

When Reaper got back to the morgue, he had had time to think. He had gotten the taxi to drop him off a couple of blocks away from the hospital just so he could walk and think at the same time. Even the hot summer sun couldn’t melt the ice as it encroached on his soul. 

As much as he liked Geno, he wasn’t going to force himself on him. And as much as he liked Geno, he wasn’t going to let the young doctor shove his affection to the side as if it were trash. What would it have been like, to be in a long-term relationship with him and have his feelings dismissed at every turn? By then, Reaper could only imagine that he would be head over heels for Geno, and he wouldn’t be able to leave him. It was good, to find out Geno’s true feelings now rather than waiting till he was too far gone to leave the situation. 

Unlike Geno, Reaper wasn’t one to go completely silent on someone else. He would make his intentions clear, but like the coward he was, he leaned back against the outer wall of the morgue, piecing together the perfect text message. They weren’t breaking up, as they had never been together, but it felt like the pathologist was typing the worst kind of resignation letter. 

_ Geno,  _

The text began, 

_ It’s been fun chasing after you, but I’ve realized that I’m old, and much too tired to keep it up. I’m writing to let you know I’d like us to remain as friends and friends only from now on. Have a great day.  _

After reading the message three times over, making sure the tone was friendly but the words stern, he sent it. He took in a deep breath. 

He felt relieved, yet sad. He was sad for himself, for getting so enamored with someone who quite obviously hadn’t wanted him from the beginning. He felt stupid, for letting himself get strung along all these months. He didn’t plan on truly being friends with Geno; he probably wouldn’t see him much from now on, and he didn’t even expect a text back from the resident doctor. 

So, when his phone vibrated a few seconds later, he was more confused than surprised or hopeful. 

But the response was like a dagger to his soul: 

_ Ok.  _

Reaper laughed sorrowfully, feeling his eye light go out as he tilted his head to the sky. 

Life had been right. 

It was much better to move on from someone who didn’t care for you than to pretend everything was alright. 

But it still hurt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This week you get two chapters, because I felt the following chapter deserved one of its own. It is not a continuation of this chapter, fyi. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	34. "Stay strong, little buddy!"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chara's past is revealed, and in the meantime she and Blue try to find some matching swimsuits.

Chara had been like every other child. 

Until she wasn’t. 

She had very vague memories of her life before ending up at the orphanage. She remembered her human mother and father, but the only significant thing she really remembered was that it had been raining when they stopped outside a rather large house, wedged just between a laundromat and a butcher’s shop in the heart of New Home City. Her mama bent down, zipping her green and yellow rain slicker up to her chin, and kissing her on the forehead. Chara couldn’t remember if either of her biological parents said anything to her, but she honestly doubted they had. Instead they left her at the front door of Miss Muffet’s Home For Children in the cold downpour, with her frog patterned rain booties and pink, animated princess backpack strapped to her back. 

Somehow, she knew to wait outside the door. Chara thought she must have been prepped for her drop-off. Her first real encounter with a monster, that she could remember, was with Miss Muffet herself, whose spiders had let slip that some filthy humans had just left a child outside, not even ringing the bell to alert any of the staff. The spider woman tutted when she opened the door, seeing the young girl child, small and vulnerable with so claws to speak of to fend off any less-than-savory company that could have come by. 

“My, my... “ Muffet sighed, two of her arms moving and scooping her up. “We’ve got a tasty snack here.” 

Chara squealed and laughed, she remembered, chubby hands reaching out towards the spider monster’s face, wanting to pull on the hair hanging to the sides. Muffet laughed. 

“Okay, okay. Come in.” She pulled the human child close, cradling the toddler in her arms. Human children weren’t often sent to her orphanage, but she decided it was a particularly terrible set of humans who decided monsters were more apt to raise their child than they were. 

Or, perhaps more likely, they hoped the monsters would feast on their daughter’s plump little limbs. It’s why the State never sent human children here, anyway. 

Miss Muffet turned and walked back inside, starting young Chara’s life as a parentless human child. 

As expected, Chara didn’t quite fit in. 

She was always surrounded by children of a different species, the only human in a sea of monsters. She became a target for bullying and pranks, often finding herself hiding out in Miss Muffet’s office, sitting on the floor and coloring in a book filled with unicorns and dragons. But she was a resilient child, and after she had calmed down she would wander back out, kicking sand into the faces of those who had made her cry. 

Every night at dinner she would sit next to an older boy, a cat monster, who would sometimes give her his dessert. It didn’t happen too often, but the possibility drove her to pick her seat strategically. It wasn’t until much later in life that she realized he would only give her his dessert towards the end of the month, when the orphanage’s State-given funds were beginning to dwindle to only crumbs and they had been given half portions for their meals to make the food stores last longer. 

“Stay strong, little buddy.” He said, sliding his brownie off his tray and onto hers. “We’ll both get a second chance someday.” 

He got his second chance when he had to move to a home for teenagers, and Chara’s came in the form of a goat monster family who wanted a second child, but was unfortunately unable to produce another. They took it as a sign and opportunity to invite a child with no parents into their family. 

The Dreemurr’s came with their son, allowing him full access to the entire orphanage. They wanted him to find a child he would bond with, on his own, and then they would make a decision. 

Asriel was excited, but a bit shy himself. He tried to talk to some of the other children, who did their best to impress him, but none quite wanted to play. They wanted to speak or show him their magic; prove to him they were worthy of the love and attention their own biological parents had forsaken them of. So he wandered, until he happened upon the lonely human child, who was in the middle of marrying one of her human dolls to a tyrannosaurus rex toy. 

“Can I play?” Asriel asked tentatively, and when she nodded he knelt down beside her. “What are you playing?” 

She gave him the entire run down. The doll’s name was Mettabie, and the dinosaur was cleverly named Dino. But, Mettabie only married Dino because he had her sister trapped in an underground cave filled with air jellyfish that would sting her if she tried to escape. Even more worrisome was that Mettabie was really in love with Dino’s own sister, Bronty (a brontosaurus toy), but they could never be together. 

Asriel nodded as she explained, then jumped right in. They lost themselves in the story as Bronty stopped the wedding and she and Mettabie went on an epic adventure to find Mettabie’s sister, who ended up marrying the two once she had been rescued. It had been the most beautiful ceremony in all of history, and to this day Chara was unsure if there would ever be one to rival it. 

“Ah, there you are Asriel.” Toriel, his mother, walked up to the two children. He looked up at her, a grin plastered on his face. “What are you doing?”

“We’re playing! See, these two are in love…” Asriel began his explanation, while his mother nodded and glanced at the bright red-eyed child he was playing with. 

“And who’s this?” She asked when he was done, nodding to Chara. Asriel puffed up his chest, trying to look strong like his father. 

“My new sister!” He cried. 

Chara, admittedly, didn’t remember much of the rest of the day. She remembered Toriel introducing herself, promising to get the paperwork started as quickly as possible. Then she was introduced to Asgore, who shook her hand, her own tiny appendage disappearing neatly into his paw. Luckily for her, the Dreemurrs had started on the procedure to adopt a child almost a year before showing up at the orphanage, so she was able to go home with them in just a few days (or was it weeks? Time flew by when you were getting a family.) She remembered them visiting her everyday, always received wet, motherly kisses from Toriel, tight hugs from Asgore, and Asriel would always hold her hand as they sped off to play. 

She couldn’t have asked for a better family. Not in a million years. 

But there was a downside to being a human adopted by a monster family. 

The first time it happened, they were at the zoo. 

She was perched on Asgore’s shoulders, her popsicle staining not only her mouth but dripping onto her father’s fur, turning it pink because she had  _ insisted  _ on getting the one that looked like the princess from the newest animated movie. 

“My child, you really need to use a napkin.” Toriel fussed, beginning to wipe away the stickiness with a wipe she had packed in her bag for the outing. 

“Sorry mommy.” Chara smiled cheekily before going back to her treat. 

“Mommy?” Someone whispered from close by. “That’s their kid? What a disgrace.” 

Chara turned her head to look, but she couldn’t be sure who said it. She scowled and bit off the last piece of her ice cream. 

“They’re  _ monsters.  _ Who would let them adopt a  _ human? _ ” 

Now the countenance of the entire family changed. Asriel was looking around, confused. 

“Mom, why are they saying that?” He asked Toriel, grabbing her hand. 

“They don’t understand what love truly means, my dear.” She glared at the family whispering about them. “Their souls are too cold.” 

“Daddy?” Chara asked, looking down at Asgore, who tilted his head up. 

“Yes, my princess?” He asked, smiling, his kind eyes troubled. She frowned, then grinned. 

“I LOVE YOU DADDY!” She screamed at the top of her lungs happily. “I LOVE YOU MOMMY! I LOVE YOU BIG BROTHER!” 

They laughed. 

“We love you too, Chara.” They echoed her sentiment, though at a bit of a more considerate volume. 

While that incident stood out in her recollection, she found the memory of breaking down in harsh fit of wailing in front of one of the exhibits because her parents wouldn’t let her take a komodo dragon home much more memorable. 

People whispering behind her back because she had found a loving family with another species was something Chara had gotten all too used to through her life.  She let it roll off her back, like a bead of inconsequential sweat. 

But it seemed Blue hadn’t quite gotten used to it. 

Chara had picked up on it almost immediately when they started seeing each other. The whispers when their backs were turned. It wasn’t like she hadn’t been expecting it; she and Error had heard it plenty of times when they went out. But both of them were used to vile tongues murmuring about them. Blue, however, was the kind of guy who could warm an ice queen’s heart with a simple smile, and the gossip confused and irritated him in ways he didn’t quite understand at first. 

It wasn’t until their shopping trip to prepare for King’s Weekend that it really hit him just what kind of hate people meant by it. 

They had gone to one of the shopping malls to look for a few key items they would need for their trip to the beach on the long weekend. They both needed new swimsuits, and Blue had the brilliant idea that they should try to find some that matched. 

“We’ve been to four stores already, Blue…” Chara sighed. “I don’t think anywhere is going to have anything that matches perfectly.” 

“Someone has to have something that’s close.” Blue humphed, tugging on her hand as he led her to the next stop on their itinerary. 

When they got to the store, instead of looking through the clothing racks, Blue went straight to one of the store clerks. She smiled at them, lipstick smeared on one of her front teeth. 

“How can I help you today?” She asked, standing as straight as a board in her starched uniform. 

“I was wondering if you had any men’s and women’s swimsuits that matched?” Blue looked up at her, eyes changing to stars with the strength of his determination. 

The clerk looked him up and down, then looked Chara up and down, and with a sneering smile and pop of her chewing gum said, 

“Sorry, we don’t do that here.” 

His face fell, and he frowned in confusion. 

“Do what? Matching outfits?” He asked. Chara sighed. 

“It doesn’t matter,  _ sweetie _ .” She said, heavily emphasizing her relationship status. “We don’t want to do business here anyway.” 

Blue looked from Chara to the clerk, puzzled but knowing enough to stay quiet. 

“We wouldn’t want it.” The clerk strained a smiled at Chara. “Have a good day.” 

Now it was Chara’s turn to lead him out of the store. 

“Why was she so mean?” Blue asked, looking back over his shoulder. 

“Because she’s a bigot, Blue.” Her voice was strained. It was one thing to make her feel bad, but she knew it was going to hurt Blue even more. “She doesn’t approve of us being together.” 

“It’s none of her business.” Blue frowned. 

“You’re right, it isn’t. But us just existing makes her think she has a right to intrude on our lives.” She took in a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. They stopped outside of a cotton candy stall so she could quell the anger beginning to bubble in her. Explaining it was even worse than just living it. 

“Chara…” Blue looked up at her, a soft frown on his face. “I’m sorry… I kind of acted naive, didn’t I? I guess I am.” He laughed bitterly. 

“It’s not your fault. You shouldn’t apologize for anything. I’m just… upset you’re seeing how it is.” 

Blue smiled and gave Chara’s hand a gentle squeeze.

“I’m not a child… And besides, we can stand anything if we’re together. Just like you and your family did, right?” 

She smiled. 

“Yeah, just like me and my family did.” 

“Because love conquers all, right?” 

“Yeah, because love conquers- WHAT?!” She cried, eyes wide. Blue laughed and pulled her into him. 

“That’s right, Chara, I love you. No matter what anyone says, they’re not taking away my feelings for you.” 

She laughed, the heat in her cheeks returning. She gave him a soft kiss on the head. 

“I love you too, Blue… Now, do you just want to get matching colors for swimsuits? I was thinking pink.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I felt this needed a chapter of its own because the subject material is a bit hefty, but also it's extremely important to understand the larger world of TTC. I hope you guys enjoyed it, since this is one of the things I've had in mind, but hasn't been able to come out yet. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	35. Someday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross and Dream head to the beach early.

Today was someday. 

It was time to go to the beach. 

Cross and Dream woke up in the wee hours on the Thursday before King’s Weekend officially began. It was only a few hours past midnight as they crawled out of bed and began dressing. They had been mindful to pack their luggage the afternoon before, and tried to get to bed early, but both were too giddy for the day ahead to sleep too much. 

When they had finally finished gathering all their things, they headed out of Dream’s apartment and down the stairs. 

“Got the keys?” Cross asked, rubbing at his eyes. 

“Yeah, I used them to lock the door.” Dream was much too sleepy to laugh, but there was humor in his voice. 

“The folder?” 

“It’s in my backpack…” Dream stopped on a step anyway and pulled his backpack around, peeking inside and making sure the folder with the most precious of documents was inside. If he didn’t have it, it would completely ruin the entire weekend. “Got it!” 

“Heh. Good. I didn’t want us to leave it behind.” Cross clunked down the steps, each of their suitcases hitting the steps harshly on their way down. 

Once down they headed out the door and to the apartment complex’s parking garage where Cross packed the trunk of Dream’s car neatly. They were heading out a day early, since Cross had booked it for Thursday through Monday, when they’d check out to leave. Everyone else still needed to work, so the two of them went in order to get the most of Cross’s hard earned money. It was also an opportunity for them to enjoy themselves before the others got there. 

Cross took the wheel, so Dream could sleep the first stretch and then they’d switch the first time they needed to get gas. Dream slid in his seat and closed his eyes, but was unable to quell the excitement fluttering in his soul. So, instead, he switched positions to lean over the center console, placing his head on Cross’s shoulder and weaving their fingers together. 

“I might need both hands…” Cross mumbled playfully. Dream just smiled sleepily. 

“Doesn’t matter. You have to do what I say. Since you belong to me, and all.” 

“Not yet.” Cross scoffed. 

“Someday.” 

“Someday.” 

 

* * *

 

The drive went off without so much as a hitch. The only negative thing that could have been said to happen was the fact Cross continued to chug energy drinks, adding to his own, natural jitters and causing his hands to shake on the steering wheel. And although they had each planned to sleep when the other was driving, they stayed awake, looking out to the horizon and waiting for the moment they reached the small, yet bustling, beach town. 

They stopped first at the beach house, checking in on their own by inputting a code on the locked box hanging from the door handle, finding the keys to the house nestled inside. Dream was the one who unlocked the door, after several times since his own hands were shaking despite having only a minimal amount of caffeine during their roadtrip. When they finally were in and he was looking around the house, he clucked his tongue. 

“You had really booked this for the two of us? It’s huge.” He set his backpack down on the worn couch. 

“I wanted us to have somewhere to ourselves. I really wanted it to be somewhere special when I told you I love you.” Cross frowned slightly, closing the door behind him after he wheeled the suitcases in. 

“It  _ was _ special.” Dream smiled. “And this will be special, too.” 

“You’re right… Come on, let’s go claim the biggest room.” He smiled and began wheeling the suitcases down the hall. 

Once they had settled in, Dream insisting they unpack their suitcases because if they didn’t unpack right then, they never would even though Cross vehemently protested against it, pointing to his watch and proclaiming they needed to get going if they were going to make all of their errands on time. But Dream pouted and huffed, so they unpacked and then gathered their materials, most of them already located deep within Dream’s backpack. 

It was about midday as they sped through town, making their stops. The first was the tuxedo rental shop, next the florist, and finally the bakery. Cross was thankful Dream had forced the two of them to make all the necessary arrangements as soon as they had made the decision. Otherwise they may have ended up with a cake with the words, “Woohoo, Buckaroo! Looks like you’re two!” scrawled on it in bright blue icing. 

With the cake cradled in Dream’s lap, they sped off once more towards the beach, this time going further down than where their beach house was located until they ended up in a more remote, but still beautiful, part of the beach. Cross pulled into the parking lot of what looked like chapel, but it was much more polished with beautiful rose bushes on either side of the entrance. They piled their recently acquired items into their arms, the precious backpack on Dream’s shoulders, and headed inside. 

“Welcome!” They were greeted by a cheerful rabbit monster at the front desk. 

“We have an appointment…” Dream said, his voice quiet with sudden shyness and nerves. 

She nodded with a smile and typed on her keyboard. 

“Future Mister and Mister Cruzar?” She asked. Those five little words caused the two of them to fidget, souls pounding in their chests. Sure, they had talked about it and even planned it, but to actually hear it from someone else’s mouth made it suddenly very real. 

“Y-Yeah…” Cross swallowed, hard, grinding his teeth together. He really shouldn’t have had all those energy drinks. She smiled again and typed a bit more. 

“Alrighty… I have you two checked in so you’re officiant and crew will be on their way shortly. Do you have your marriage license?” She asked. Dream nodded and took off his backpack, pulling out the folder and slipping the license out. He handed it to her slowly, as if he were afraid of losing it. 

She took it tenderly from his hand and looked over the details. 

“Ah, good. Looks like you’ve successfully gone through the waiting period. You wouldn’t believe how many people we get who think they can just waltz in here and get married without having the proper legal documents.” She laughed, mostly to herself as Cross and Dream were beginning to feel too nervous to speak or be in anything but an impending wedding-induced panic. 

“Ah, here they are. The soon to be Cruzars.” The officiant walked towards them from a long hallway, two assistants in tow. He was a fire monster, a bright orange flame personified and apparently making a living at a cheesy wedding chapel. “I’m Grillby. It’s nice to meet you both in person.” 

“It’s nice to meet you too.” Dream spoke up, smiling softly. Grillby handed him a clipboard.

“We’ll need both of your signatures here…” The officiant pointed to the lines they needed to sign. Dream quickly signed his name in his beautiful, looping cursive while Cross managed to scratch out something reminiscent of his name. The smaller skeleton simply laughed. That was going to be on their marriage certificate, forever, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. 

“And now…” Grillby preambled as he took the clipboard from Dream. “We’ll need the rings.” 

Dream once again reached into his backpack and pulled out the two, small velvet boxes containing the rings they had picked out for each other, neither knowing what was inside the one designated for them. Since there hadn’t exactly been a proposal, they wanted at least something of their wedding to be a surprise. Once Grillby had them both securely in his hands, he smiled at the two. 

“This is where you part until the altar.” He announced. 

Dream turned back to Cross, giving him a small, but nervous smile. Cross wanted to reach out, pull him close and never let him go. But he only had to suffer for another hour, then they would be reunited. Reunited and pledging their undying love to each other for all of eternity. He would never have to say goodbye again. 

“See you soon?” Cross asked. 

“See you soon.” 

 

* * *

 

As soon as Dream was tucked away neatly in his own, private room to get ready, he went to the sink and washed his face, scrubbing the sleep from his eyes. He inhaled deeply, trying to steady himself. He knew it was foolish to run away and get married. He knew everyone would question him to death about it. It wasn’t like him. 

He smiled. 

But it was like him, for here he was, about to don his tuxedo and marry the man he loves, in a slapdash wedding he would have suspected Ink going through with. Of running away with a lame excuse, marrying with paid witnesses at his and Cross’s side because they hadn’t told anyone else. It might not have been what he imagined when he was a child, but it was his, and his nerves were those of excitement and elation at what was to come. He and Cross would be wed, and they would become a family. 

He stared into the mirror above the sink, looking deep into his eyes for any hint of second guesses hiding in the corners. He couldn’t spot any, because he didn’t feel any. He turned back around and went to his tuxedo, tucked away inside the garment bag. He didn’t need the attendant to help him dress, thankfully, and put his wedding attire on with ease. Now, he just needed to wait for the attendant to come fetch him for the ceremony. He glanced at his phone. 

Only thirty minutes until he was Mr. Cruzar. 

 

* * *

 

Cross wasn’t quite as finessed as Dream was when it came to dressing in a penguin suit. He told the attendant he didn’t need any help, then after struggling with which parts went where, he ran back out of his room and called him back. When he was fully dressed, completely with one of the roses they had picked up earlier neatly pinned to him, he sat down, and thought. 

He thought about seeing Dream for the first time. How he had continuously pressed the button on Error and Ink’s apartment building over and over again, hoping for his friend to answer. Cross had been bent, picking up the beer can Error had thrown out the window to make fun of him. He watched from his comedic position, completely enraptured. From the first moment he saw him, he wanted Dream, and not just in a sexual way. He wanted his smile, his laughter. He wanted Dream’s tears and his triumphs. He wanted to listen to him rattle on about anything for hours on end, just to hear his voice. 

If there were such things as soulmates, Cross believed he had found his.

It wasn’t planned, and it wasn’t a perfect romance, but Dream was perfect, perfect for him and perfect in every other way. He thought Dream was just saying things, when he brought up marriage. Cross was fine with whatever Dream wanted, afterall, Dream would have his soul for eternity whether or not they were married. 

But then, Dream made the leap to eloping. 

_ “It’s perfect.” Dream’s eyes were stars as he turned to Cross, tablet in hand and internet browser on the page of a wedding chapel on the beach. “It’s close to where we’re going to stay for King’s Weekend and-”  _

_ “Woah there, Dreamy. Why are you looking at wedding chapels?” Cross frowned slightly, brows furrowed together. That’s when Dream took his hand, going down on one knee in front of the monster he loved.  _

_ “Cross… Let’s get married. I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. And I don’t think I can bear moving through life without you by my side, forever and always.” Tears pricked into Dream’s eyes, threatening to spill over and onto his cheeks.  _

_ Cross fell to his knees in front of him, his own, rare tears beginning to brim in his eyes. He stared at Dream, trying his best not to blink as his jaw quivered. He couldn’t find the words to say, so instead he wrapped his arms around Dream’s shoulders, pulling him into his chest. They stayed on the floor together, their foreheads pressed into each other’s shoulders for stars knew how long.  _

_ “Okay…” He finally whispered into Dream’s ear. “Let’s do it. Let’s get married.” _

Dream had taken care of most of the preparations, since he was much better at it and Cross had to work more to pay for their wedding. It wasn’t much, and it was just the two of them, but it was worth every punch Cross took to pay for it. He even took on private tutoring lessons for various martial arts for extra cash and figured out he really did work well with children along the way.  

Now he was here, waiting to meet his groom at the altar. He was nervous. What if he tripped walking up, right in front of Dream? He supposed Dream would try to keep himself from laughing but would get a giggle or two out anyway. Cross supposed it wasn’t the worst thing that could happen on his wedding day. 

“Cross?” The attendant poked his head in the door. “It’s time.” 

 

* * *

 

Dream stood outside the door, hands clasped together to stop himself from fussing with his clothes. He looked fine. He had checked five times already. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, counting to five. 

_ One…  _

_ Two…  _

He could hear someone beginning to fiddle with the sound system, readying the song they had agreed to walk down the aisle to. 

_ Three… _

He opened his eyes and unclenched his jaw. 

_ Four…  _

He took another deep breath and unclasped his hands. 

_ Five.  _

The music began playing, a beautiful piano piece with an acoustic guitar woven in. The doors opened and Dream could see him, could see  _ Cross,  _ at the other end of the chapel, beginning to walk from his own door, stirring Dream’s feet into action. They approached the altar at the pace the music set, both of them accidentally getting out of step because of their own eagerness to leap into each other’s arms. Cross stumbled on the stairs up, his eyes breaking away from Dream’s only for a moment as he caught himself. 

Then, they were just a few feet apart, their feeting landing on the designated x’s taped to the floor. Grillby stood between them, his sermon book already open. Their ceremony would be short, seeing as how there wasn’t anyone in the audience to put on a show for. Their attendants took their spots right behind them, where groomsmen would have stood, if they had any, but they did need witnesses, and the two would do their duty beautifully. A photographer aimed his camera at them, ready to capture this sacred moment in their lives.

“We gather here today,” Grillby began, “To witness the joining of two people, Cross Cruzar and Dream Reve. Do you, Cross Cruzar, take Dream as your lawfully wedded husband?”

Cross turned to Dream, feeling as if the entire world had stopped. His partner had stars in his eyes by the wonder of it all, staring up Cross as if he were the night sky. Cross tenderly took one of Dream’s hands into each of his own, feeling his breath hitch as he opened his mouth to begin the speech he had memorized. 

“Dream… I take all of you. All of your faults, all of your strengths, I take them all. You’re perfect… Perfect to me. I promise to protect you, to stand for you, and to support you through all of life’s trials and tribulations. I’ll be by your side through it all, loving you every step of the way.” Cross paused, taking in Dream’s beautiful smile as he caught his breath. “I do.” 

“And do you, Dream, take Cross as your lawfully wedded husband?” Grillby asked, smiling at the other. Dream took in his own breath, already feeling tears at the corners of his eyes. He wasn’t sure if he’d be able to speak, but he began anyway. 

“When I met you, those few short months ago, I didn’t think true love existed.” Dream kept his gaze steady on Cross’s, his hands squeezing his tightly and his voice trembling. “You showed me so much about love, about the world, and you brought out the best in me. You taught me it’s okay to be myself. You were there in a way no one else has been there before… Cross… You’re the reason I believe in love.” He paused, sniffling as he held in his tears. Cross’s expression of pure and unadulterated love and his shaking hands were enough to send Dream off the edge, but he still had something to say. He smiled. 

“I do.” He whispered, watching as some of Cross’s tears slipped down his cheeks. 

Grillby took the ring pillow out, motioning for the assistants to untie the rings from their places. Cross and Dream unclasped one pair of hands and grabbed the other’s ring from it. 

“Cross, place your ring on Dream, and with it, thee I wed.” Grillby instructed. 

Now they had to completely pull away from each other as Cross produced the ring he had picked out for his one and only, the ring Dream would wear for the rest of his life. It was a silver band, inlaid with tiny sapphires punctuated by diamonds. Dream smiled. Sapphire, a symbol of commitment, a pledge of love. Cross really had put thought into it. He let Cross take his left hand, slipping the ring onto his finger. It fit perfectly. 

“Now Dream, go on and put your ring on Cross, and with it, thee I wed.” The fire monster continued. 

Dream sighed softly as he smiled and revealed his own ring, wanting to laugh. It was also a band, but this one made of black titanium and it too had sapphires upon it. Cross couldn’t help let out a soft sound. It looked like they had had the same idea, and now they would match. Dream took his hand and placed it on his ring finger, knowing that once it was in place they would be… 

“I now pronounce you, husband and husband!” Grillby proclaimed. “You may now kiss the groom!” 

Cross quickly swept Dream into his arms, bending him backwards and kissing him. The attendants might have clapped, but everything except the two of them was drowned out by the kiss that sealed them to each other for the rest of their lives. It was hard for them to pry themselves apart, but they knew they needed to. There was a ceremony after theirs, afterall. 

Cross pulled back, helping Dream stand up straight once more. He grinned at his partner… no, his  _ husband,  _ not wanting to take his eyes off him. Dream felt the same, keeping his arms around Cross and consciously deciding not to step away from him. They were married now. It was official. Their marriage certificate would be in the mail the next business day. Grillby coughed. 

“Come, now. We must cut the cake.” He smiled, leading them out. 

Hand in hand, they were directed to a small room where the small cake they had picked up earlier was displayed prettily on a silver platter. Their photographer followed them in, ready to capture the moment they cut their meager cake. It was just what would be the top layer of a larger cake, with no toppers, and decorated with delicate white lace icing. 

The two approached the small table, Cross taking the cake knife from beside their cake. 

“On the count of three…” He smiled at his husband, who returned it, clasping the knife over Cross’s hand. “One, two, three.” 

They slid the knife into the pastry in tandem, the sound of the camera’s shutter echoing through the room. The attendants clapped once more. It was a quiet affair, but both Dream and Cross were overjoyed. They tried their best to make a combined effort to get the slice of cake onto one of the small plates, but it ended up falling and hitting the table with a ‘splat.’ Dream laughed, then used the knife himself to get it onto the plate. 

“Alright…” He murmured as both of them took their own forks and dug out a piece of their slice of cake. Their photographer began guiding them as they aimed their forks to the other’s mouth, opening their own to receive their bite. 

“Hold that…” The photographer clicked a few pictures before nodding and letting them slide the forks into each other’s waiting mouth, his camera still trying to catch every moment. 

After they had chewed and laughed, and admittedly stared into each other’s eyes for a bit too long, Grillby coughed once more, alerting them that their time was almost up. 

“We’ll pack this up for you while you two change or gather your things.” He mentioned, giving them a well tailored smiled. “Thank you for choosing Grillby’s Chapel.” 

 

* * *

 

Once they had changed and picked up their things at the front desk, the receptionist wishing them a happy marriage, they climbed back into the car and went through a fast food joint’s drive through for their wedding meal. If Dream had thought about what his fantasy wedding would have been like one year ago, he would have imagined the stereotypical princess wedding, complete with a horse drawn carriage to carry him and his groom away at the end of their ceremony. 

But sitting here with Cross, he couldn’t have asked for a better wedding. There was no perfect wedding, he now realized, but only the perfect partner. Someone who made him whole, who made him better. And sitting next to him in the car, hands clutching the steering wheel tightly as he raced them to their little beach cabin, was his perfect match. 

Dream was ready to spend the rest of his life with Cross. 

They got back to the beach house, making sure to get all of their things out of the car, Dream holding the bag of fried food in his arms like a baby with Cross piling as much of the other things as he could into his own. They took the wooden stairs of the deck two at a time, eager to get inside and… 

Do what, exactly? 

Cross supposed he was just ready to eat, then spend time with Dream. It didn’t matter that he would have the rest of his life to be with him; he wanted to spend every single second with him  _ now.  _ That was his  _ husband.  _ His one true love. He wanted to take Dream into his arms and hold him close, to kiss him softly and whisper sweet nothings into his ear. But after he set his things down, turning to Dream to do just what he wanted, the smaller skeleton popped a french fry into his open mouth. 

“Congratulations!” Dream smiled up at him sweetly. Cross quickly chewed the fry and swallowed.

“Congratulations?” He asked, visibly confused. 

“On your marriage. Congratulations.” Dream said once more, his countenance softening and a gentle golden blush spreading over his cheeks. That’s when Cross pulled him in, holding him tenderly. He gently cupped Dream’s cheek in his hand. 

“Congratulations, mister Cruzar…” He whispered before capturing Dream’s mouth with his own.   

They lost themselves in the kiss, letting their tastes mingle and their hands wander. The food was left forgotten on the coffee table as they made their way back to the bedroom, almost dancing around each other as they moved, each unwilling to take their hands off the other. 

Cross gently pressed him back on the bed, his hand gently moving over Dream’s ribs under his shirt. Their bodies felt like they were on fire, and not just from lust. They would be making love for the first time as husbands, as two halves of a whole. It was sacred, a moment that would seal their love for one another in their own souls. Cross pulled back, just briefly, to look down at his spouse. 

“Dream… I love you.” He whispered, his hand still moving in soft circles. Dream smiled. 

“I love you too, Cross. I always will.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another early update, because today I'm celebrating the long awaited release of a character for another game I play, and I'm also using that as an excuse to post this early. 
> 
> They're elopement was kind of inspired by real friends of mine, who met when the fall semester started and were married by finals. 
> 
> When you know, you know. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	36. Beach Episode Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let's go to the beach, each  
> Let's go get away

Waking up in the wee hours on a Friday morning to go on vacation was not something Ink was very fond of doing. But Error was there with him, yawning beside him as they stood on the curb of the street outside their apartment, waiting for Chara and Blue to come get them. Ink had never been to the beach before, but it was honestly much too early for him to be as excited as he had the night before when he was trying to fall asleep and kept trying to shake Error awake so he could share in his revelry. 

Now they were both feeling that restless night, tired, standing under a street lamp because it was still dark out. 

“Did you get everything?” Error murmured, blinking himself awake. Ink nodded, covering his mouth with his hand as he yawned. 

“Yeah…” He sighed. “I even sent a text to Template.” 

“...I meant physical things.” 

“It’s something I had to get done before leaving. He’s supposed to be working on a plan for confessing his feelings to Pale.” 

“You really shouldn’t play matchmaker to two teenagers, Ink.” 

“I’m not! I’m guiding him to do it himself! You know, like a… Like a…” 

“Fairy godmother?” 

“Exactly! But more of a fairy Inkmother, get it?” 

“You’re impossible…” 

Their conversation was cut short by a car pulling up, Chara hanging out the passenger side window and yelling, 

“Get in losers, we’re going to the beach!” 

 

* * *

 

The road trip ended up being long and tedious, because Chara, who was the only one who really needed bathroom breaks, drank too much caffeine on the way and ended up having to stop and get out every five minutes. Ink passed out against his window, leaving a drool stain Blue was going to have to clean up before he gave the keys back to Papyrus. 

They arrived in the early afternoon, too late for lunch but too early for a full meal. They were greeted by the lovely voice of one of their cabin mates. 

“Ink! Blue!” Dream called from the worn wooden patio, waving at them. Cross came up from behind him and waved as well before they made their way down the stairs to help them get their things up.

“How was the trip?” Cross asked Error as he tried to shake Ink awake. 

“Tiring.  _ Someone  _ had to stop every five minutes to pee.” He huffed. Ink groaned and barely opened his eyes. 

“I didn’t pee…” He said groggily, finally sitting upright in his seat. Error rolled his eyes and slid out of the backseat. 

“Of course you didn’t. I wasn’t talking about you-” 

“He was talking about me and I refuse to apologize for being the only one with a bladder!” Chara huffed, deciding to ignore Error for the time being and turning her attention on the one person in the party she had yet to meet. 

Her eyes sparkled as he looked down at Dream, a grin already on her face. She reached out a hand. 

“You must be Dream. I’m Chara.” 

The smaller smiled, slowly reaching forward and gripping her hand in his, giving it a small motion up and down. 

“Nice to meet you. Cross has told me a lot about you. Is it true you like to cook?” He asked. She nodded. 

“I love it!” 

“Great! I think the two of us will be the only ones cooking while we’re here. I don’t think anyone else can.” 

“I can!” Blue called from the car. 

“You can help.” Chara reminded him gently, giving him a pointed look that made him remember the taco incident. 

It had been the first time he had ever been to Chara’s apartment. He had promised her he would cook her his signature meal, but she took one bite from her taco and immediately went and poured the remnants of her food into the trash. He hadn’t had the time to be upset because she grabbed his hand and marched him out and to the grocery store, where they picked up ingredients for Chara to instruct him on how to make a taco properly. 

“I can help…” Blue affirmed with a sigh. He still had a lot to learn. He was on a first year college student’s level and Chara was up there with the master chefs. He didn’t mind so much. 

“There’s a grill.” Cross pointed out. 

“Can you grill?” Dream quirked a brow. 

“I’ve done it a few times…” Cross shrugged. “Though it was for meat. I’ve never grilled vegetables before.” 

“I’ll teach you.” Chara chimed happily, always a willing teacher. “You need to learn how to impress your boyfriend, after all.” 

Cross and Dream exchanged a look, then quickly found anything else to occupy their attention. 

Ink, though still groggy, looked between the two of them and caught the nuance. 

“Something fishy’s going on here…” He deduced, rubbing his chin. He paused, letting himself laugh at his own, unintentional pun. He went over to Dream and leaned in, studying his face. 

“What is it, Dream? You look like you have something to tell us.” 

Dream averted his gaze again, grinning awkwardly. 

“There is… something.” He admitted. “But I think it should wait until we get inside.” 

Ink gave him a hard look for a moment longer before pulling back and going over to Error to grab his things. 

“He’s pregnant.” He whispered. Error sighed. 

“Ink.” 

“Yeah? Do you think they’ll name it after me?” 

“Ink. Male skeletons can’t get pregnant.” 

“Oh. Right… They could still name their eventual kid after me.” 

“Poor kid.” 

The two of them were the last ones up the steps and into the cozy house that was decorated as if a grandmother decided she were obsessed with sea shells, sailboats, and light blue linen. But it was warm and inviting and they liked it all the same. 

“Okay, so you guys get this room.” Dream led them down the hall to the last room available. It was the smallest, but with a decent enough sized bed so Error and Ink wouldn’t be laying all over each other. Error grumbled something under his breath. 

“You two were the last in.” Dream smiled apologetically and shrugged. 

“Just means we’ll have motivation to spend our time at the beach!” Ink happily agreed. He wanted to collect sea shells and bask in the waves. He briefly wondered if Error would mind running back into town so he could get an inflatable floaty. He wanted one that looked like a dinosaur- 

“Can you guys come here?”  Cross called after them. 

“One sec!” Dream called back. “Do you guys want to get your stuff put away?” 

The two of them looked down at their duffle bags and shrugged them off, tossing them inside the room without much ceremony. 

“We’re okay.” Error shrugged. Dream frowned softly before shaking his head and turning, leading them back into the living room. 

“Sit down.” Dream quietly commanded, a smile and soft blush on his face. 

“Are you sure we can’t get pregnant?” Ink whispered to Error, who groaned. 

“Very. Sure.” 

They sat down on the plush couch next to Chara and Blue, who seemed to be just as anxious and curious as they were as to why Cross and Dream had called a family meeting as soon as they had arrived. The two stood before them, holding hands as they mustered the courage they were going to need to tell them about the day before. 

“So I guess…” Dream tried to start, but ended up trailing off, unsure of how to say it. 

“We got married yesterday.” Cross spit out, deadpan. In fact, such an expressionless delivery of such a profound statement caused the others to simply stare and tilt their heads. 

When neither Cross nor Dream said anything else, Chara took it upon herself to fill the silence. 

She guffawed, waving the statement off with a flick of her wrist. 

“That’s not a very funny joke, you two. Besides, you can’t just get married in a day because you wanted to. There’s paperwork-” 

“We filed for our marriage license weeks ago.” Dream grinned sheepishly. “As soon as this was planned, really.” 

That made Chara’s jaw snap shut. 

“See?” Dream gently offered his left hand out to them, nudging Cross in the side to do so as well. The four of them leaned forward, eyeing the wedding bands. Error sat back, giving a long sigh. 

“Cross, you fucked up. You know Char-” 

“Cross…” Chara growled, and everyone would later swear they saw her eyes glowing a bright ruby, almost the color of blood. 

“Y-yeah?” He asked, already beginning to back away. 

But Chara stayed seated, hands folded in her lap. She wouldn’t murder him. 

Not with Blue watching. 

“HOW DARE YOU TAKE AWAY MY CHANCE OF CATCHING THE BOUQUET AT YOUR WEDDING?!” She cried, throwing herself back in her seat and crossing her arms. “We had a deal.” 

“There wasn’t a bouquet anyway…” Dream frowned. “What deal?” 

Cross sighed. 

“We had a deal that if I got married before her, I’d tell my spouse to deliberately throw the bouquet at her.” 

Dream tried not to laugh. Chara seemed legitimately upset, and he didn’t want to provoke her further. But it was a silly thing to be upset over. 

“You robbed me of that and you robbed me of giving my drunken best man speech!” She pouted, stamping her foot on the wood floor. 

“Error would have been my best man, anyway.” Cross groaned. “Is no one here happy for us?” 

“Congratulations.” Error and Blue said at the same time, though the latter’s was a bit more enthusiastic than the former’s. 

“Don’t worry, Chara…” Ink moved to pat her on the back. “You can catch the bouquet at my wedding.” 

Chara continued to pout and glowered at him, but she seemed to be getting over her tantrum. 

“Thanks, Ink.” She smiled slightly. “I don’t really need it anymore, anyway.” She nodded over her shoulder at Blue, who smiled without even hearing the conversation. Ink gave her a grin in return before turning back to the newlyweds. 

“Congrats, you too!” He said happily. 

“Yeah, congrats!” Chara joined in. 

“Your brother’s going to be pissed as shit, Dream.” Ink continued. Dream cowered back, grimacing. 

“Let’s not worry about Nightmare right now…” He mumbled and Cross put an arm around his shoulder, pulling him in. 

“I guess we have reason to make a really good meal tonight!” Chara hopped up, energized by the thought of creating a culinary masterpiece. “Have you guys gone shopping at all?” 

Dream shook his head. They had forgotten to eat the night before and ate the remaining cake for breakfast and hadn’t needed to go grocery shopping. 

“We were waiting for you to get here…” He quietly explained. 

“Okay, I guess me, you and Blue can go, since we’re the cooks.” Chara gave a half-hearted glare at the others. “And you can pick out what you want to have. We’ll have an all vegetarian cuisine tonight.” 

“All vegetarian?” Ink cried. 

“You can eat vegetarian for once in your life, can’t you?” Error asked. “And don’t complain. It’s your friend’s wedding meal.” 

“But you don’t like vegetarian either!” 

“I know not to complain about it.” 

Chara sighed. 

“Can we just go? I can’t stand all this whining. It’s giving me a migraine.”

“I want to go!” Ink gasped, shooting up from the couch. 

“Why? Just stay here with Error.” Chara groaned. “I know for a fact you can’t cook. You barely know how to use a microwave.” 

“The store might have a floaty, and I want one-” 

“Shaped like a dinosaur.” Error finished for him. “We got one before leaving. I made sure to pack it in my things because I knew you’d forget it and make a scene.” 

“Oh.” Ink’s eyes brightened and he latched himself onto Error’s arm. “My fiance knows me so well.” 

“Oh!” Dream’s eyes turned to stars. “Speaking of, did you ever get your engagement ring?” 

Ink grinned and thrust his left hand out to him. Placed delicately on his ring finger was a golden band to match Error’s silver one. It wasn’t much, and it seemed to be a bit too simple for the artist. So much so, Dream blinked, unsure of what to say. 

“It’s… Great…” He smiled at his friend. Ink laughed. 

“I know what you’re thinking, and we’re keeping the rest of the money to buy actual wedding bands. There was this one that looked like a leopard with emerald eyes-” 

“He’s not getting that one.” Error finished for him. 

“Oh my stars, you’re all a bunch of girls!” Chara fumed. “Can we  _ please  _ go shopping now?” 

Everyone snapped to attention, except for Blue, who sighed dreamily. 

“She’s so perfect…” 

 

* * *

 

After the others had left and Ink had gone off to the bedroom to blow air into his dinosaur floaty, Error and Cross relaxed on the sofa, a strange but not uncomfortable silence falling over them. 

“So…” Error began, finally breaking it. “You’re a married man now, huh?” 

“Yep…” Cross nodded to himself. Error let out a small laugh. 

“Does it feel weird?” 

Cross thought for a moment. 

“Yeah, really weird. But it’s not a  _ bad  _ weird. It’s a good weird. I’m going to spend the rest of my life with the guy I love. It was an… unconventional wedding.” 

“And really fast. I thought we were moving too fast, but you’ve outdone me. Again.” 

Cross laughed. 

“I can’t help it, Error. He asked me if we could get married over the weekend and I said yes.” 

“You just do whatever he asks?” 

“Error, I was his the moment I saw him outside your shitty ass apartment. This just makes it legal.” 

Error scoffed and shook his head slightly. 

“What about your family? You think they’re gonna care?” 

Cross shook his head. 

“You know how they are. They pretend I don’t exist unless they want something from me. I doubt me getting hitched will be any different. I’m more worried about Dream’s brother...” 

“Nightmare.” Error sighed. “You think he’ll take it badly?” 

“‘Badly’ isn’t the right word. I’m not sure how he’ll take it, but he freaked out when he caught us making out and has barely talked to Dream since. It’s weird. He’ll talk to me, because of anime club, but not his own brother.” 

“Brotherly relationships are weird…” 

“Yeah… How’s Fresh doing? Geno?” 

“Fresh is… slowly accepting that Ink and I are getting married. He doesn’t  _ hate  _ Ink, I think. He’s just having a hard time accepting change. It was okay when Ink was still an outsider, but now that he’s becoming family I think Fresh is realizing we won’t be the same as we were when we were kids.” 

“It must be hard for him… He’s only ever had you two.” 

“Yeah… he was just a baby when dad died… And mom became absent after that. It makes sense he’s hesitant.” 

“How’s Geno? Is he happy for you?” 

“He acts like he’s happy. I think he’s glad we won’t be getting married for a while. I think that’s what’s keeping me in his good graces.” 

“You know, Geno loves celebrating. If you eloped like we did, he’d be pissed as fuck.” 

Error rolled his eyes. 

“I know. And thanks for that. Now Ink is probably going to get more impatient.” He murmured. Cross just chuckled and waved it off. 

“How’s Geno and that creepy guy?” 

“...Creepy guy broke up with him, when they weren’t even dating.” 

“Oh, that’s rough… I guess Geno did the thing again?” 

“Geno did the thing again.” Error sighed. “I guess he’s so used to being alone he just pushes everyone but me and Fresh away… only because he wants to keep an eye on us, though.” 

“I thought he actually liked the guy?” 

“He did! ...does. But I have a plan.” 

“You? Trying to set someone up? This isn’t going to work out well.” 

Error rolled his eyes. 

“No… I’m just going to get them talking again. And maybe kick Geno’s ass until he realizes he can enjoy himself a little.” 

“You can’t kick Geno’s ass; he’d wipe the floor with you.” 

“You don’t know that.” 

“I’ve seen the aftermath and it wasn’t pretty.” 

“...” 

“Do you think Ink’s okay? He’s been in your room for a while.” 

“He’s either fallen asleep or choked on the floaty. I’ll go check on him.” Error sighed and stood, going down the narrow hall until he slowly opened the door. 

Both of his predictions came true in a sense: Ink was curled up on the bed, passed out and snoring softly, his arms wrapped tightly around the floaty they had brought that ended up looking more like a dragon than a dinosaur in the end. 

Error sighed, smiling softly. He had half a mind to pull the floaty from him but decided it was best not to and instead simply slipped onto the bed next to him. He watched the artist, finding him beautiful even if there was a dribble of spit coming out the side of his mouth. He thought about Cross and Dream, who knew when it was their time to wed. 

A year really wasn’t so long, was it?

 

* * *

 

“Time to wake up, assholes.” Chara flung on the lights in the room, making the two skeletons, who both somehow cuddled up to the floaty, groan and slowly open their eyes. 

“How late is it?” Ink asked, peeling his cheek off the plastic. 

“Late enough for us to go shopping and cook a whole meal. Come on, we’re going to eat on the patio.” She smiled before pulling herself out of the doorway. 

Error sighed and threw the floaty off the bed, rubbing his cheek where one of its jagged seams had cut into him. 

“I can’t believe we slept so long…” Ink groaned. 

“You did keep us awake for most of the night.” Error slowly sat  up, rubbing at his eyes. 

“Ah, yeah…” Ink laughed it off. “It’s just… my first vacation!” 

Error studied him for a moment before sighing and smiling. 

“We’ll make the most of it, I promise. And have many more.” 

Ink grinned and nodded, jumping off the bed. 

“I  _ am  _ hungry and it smells really good. Let’s go!” 

The two sleepyheads made their way out to the patio, where a nice, vegetarian spread was on the picnic table. Cross and Dream were next to each other, heads close as if they were whispering war intel, though Error could tell just by the look on Cross’s face it was mostly sweet nothings passing between them. He wanted to roll his eyes and call his best friend out, but it was his honeymoon, so Error held his tongues. 

There were plastic champagne glasses filled with bubbling wine placed out, except for Ink’s, which was filled with sparkling grape juice. 

“Before we start,” Chara began, “I wanted to give the toast I should have been allowed to give at his wedding.” 

She shot a pointed glare at Cross, then smoothed her face back into a smile.

“I don’t have much to say, except congrats you two. And Dream, welcome to the family.” 

They all lifted their glasses and clinked them together with a chorus of ”Congratulations”, throwing back the cheap supermarket champagne, all of them but Ink trying to hold in a grimace at the bitter taste. 

“Let’s eat…” Error frowned. “I gotta get this taste out of my mouth.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can all pat yourselves on the back for the name of this chapter, since I couldn't get it out of my head since you guys kept calling it the "beach episode" XD 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	37. Beach Episode Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang has fun on the beach! 
> 
> An unlikely pair bond over a game of beach volleyball.

The motley crew slept in the following day, the majority of them exhausted from their early car ride down to the ocean. Cross and Dream were able to stay up later, seeing as how they were the only ones with a good night’s rest the day before. It was still almost noon before they were all up, Dream having slept in the longest. 

“He would…” Ink whispered to Error over cups of coffee as they sat at the elevated dining room table. “He always did after-” 

“Have a bagel.” Error sighed, pushing the pastry into his mouth. “I’d really like to not think about that right now. Or ever.” 

Ink mumbled something with his mouth full. 

“So what’s on the agenda today?” Chara asked. She was still in her pajamas, but had her makeup done and hair tied up. 

“I figured we could just be on the beach?” Cross offered. “It’s not like this town has a boardwalk or anything. Besides, we basically have our own private beach with the rental. We might as well use it.” 

“Great!” Blue chirped. “I think they have a volleyball net. We could play some games!” 

“No thanks.” Ink sighed. “I’m an artist, not a sportsman.” 

“You don’t have to be a ‘sportsman’ to play beach volleyball.” Error smirked. “Unless you’re scared of losing?”

Ink huffed and frowned. 

“I’m not scared of losing. It just doesn’t interest me.” 

“Good morning…” Dream mumbled as he came into the room, rubbing his eyes. “What are you two on about so early?” 

“Dreamy, it’s noon.” Cross laughed softly. “And we’re talking about playing beach volleyball together. Ink doesn’t want to play.” 

“Yeah, he wouldn’t.” Dream sighed and hopped into a seat. Cross moved back to the counter and fixed him a cup of coffee, piled with sugar and cream, before setting it down in front of him. The smaller one smiled. “Thanks.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ink huffed, crossing his arms. 

“Come on, Ink,” Blue looked to him. “You hate anything you won’t be instantly good at. So you make fun of it or say you’re better than it.” 

“He did say that about video games, then got instantly killed by a bear when he tried to play one.” Error noted. Ink pouted. 

“Fine, I’ll do it.” He huffed. 

“Great!” Blue grinned. “But let’s make different teams.” 

“Different teams?” Chara asked. 

“Yeah! We can mix it up a bit. How about this,” Blue looked around the table. “I’ll be with Cross.” 

Cross frowned, but shrugged. 

“Dream can be with Error.” 

Dream quickly looked down into his mug of coffee. 

“And Ink and Chara can be together.” 

Chara looked sideways at Ink. 

“We’re already gonna lose.” 

“Don’t blame this on me, miss I-don’t-like-breaking-my-nails.” Ink  sighed. 

“That was one time!” 

“Children, behave.” Cross started. “This’ll be… interesting. Let’s go get dressed and meet outside.” 

They all agreed and scrambled from the table as quickly as possible, leaving Cross and Dream alone as the latter finished his coffee. 

“Is that okay?” Cross asked his husband. 

“...” Dream looked down into his drink, then smiled anxiously. “I’m sure it is. I need to get to know him better, right? And you said he’s been pretty understanding of all this.” 

“Error’s more understanding than people might think.” Cross paused. “I think it’s because he doesn’t really give a shit about most of the world. So respecting his best friend’s husband’s boundaries isn’t all that hard.” 

Dream laughed at that. 

“Hopefully I don’t let him down in the game. I was always picked last in gym class.” 

“It’s just for fun.” Cross gently kissed him on the top of his skull. “Now come on, let’s go get our swimsuits on.” 

 

* * *

 

Blue and Chara were the first ones out in their matching pink flamingo swimsuits they had gotten at one of Mettaton’s many shops in a different mall. When they asked the clerk for help he had simply clapped his hands and led them to a different part of the store. 

Chara was blowing up the beach ball they had brought, serving it off to the skeleton when she was finished. 

“There!” She said triumphantly. “All ready for me to cream those losers.” 

“You’d have to cream me, too.” Blue laughed. “Which isn’t going to happen.”

Chara thought for a moment. 

“You’re right. You have a bit more of an advantage than me. You have Cross. I’ve got the kid that only lifts a pencil.”

“What are you saying about my lifting routine?” Ink and Error popped up behind them. 

“I said what I said.” Chara laughed softly. “Oh, you found a stereo!” 

Error set the almost ancient piece of technology down. 

“It’s got some sand on it, so I guessed it was okay to be out here. It only plays tapes, though.” He frowned. 

“We’ve got some oldies, but they seem like good ones.” Ink shrugged. “Better than not having any music at all.” 

“True.” Blue nodded, bending down and turning the machine on. Dated music from the 50s or 60s blared from it, making him turn down the volume to an acceptable one quickly. “And it’s pretty loud.” 

“Was that you guys?” Cross called across the sand as he and Dream jogged to meet them. 

“Unfortunately.” Error confirmed. 

“We brought some drinks!” Dream happily held up the small cooler filled to the brim with both alcohol and various other liquids. 

“Perfect! We can stay out here all day!” Ink said happily. 

“Come on, let’s get this tournament started.” Error grinned, ready for the blood to flow. He couldn't help but be a bit competitive. It had gotten him to places during his life he wouldn’t have otherwise risen to without the drive of wanting to be better than everyone else. Today was no different. 

“Okay,” Blue grinned. “It’ll be me and Cross versus Chara and Ink first.” 

“Why?” Error frowned. 

“You’re way too eager. You need some time to think about why you’re so excited to beat your fiance at something he doesn’t even care about.” Blue shrugged. 

“He’s got a point.” Cross noted. 

“Yeah, what the fuck, Error?” Ink mock scolded with a smile on his face. “I’m too wimpy for this. You’re the college baseball star.” 

Error sighed. 

“Maybe you should work out sometime.” 

“You don’t work out either.” 

“Boys.” Chara frowned. “Let’s get this game on.” 

The two pairs lined up on the sandy court while Error and Dream stepped back to watch. Chara was the first to serve, sending it up and over. Dream could have sworn he saw Cross’s eyes both turn into a glowing red. 

“Does he do that often?” He whispered to Error, pointing to his husband as he smacked the ball back over the frayed net. 

“Uh…” Error had to think. “Only when he wants to win. You haven’t watched him fight yet, have you?” 

Dream shook his head as Ink ran for the ball and tried to hit it, missing,  giving Cross and Blue the point. 

“I don’t really want to.” He admitted. “I know he does it but…” 

“That’s probably for the best…” Error sighed, watching as Ink tried to serve the ball and missed. 

“Ink! Keep your eye on the ball!” He called, to which Ink gave him a thumbs up and then missed the serve again. Error sighed, but said nothing else. When Ink missed a second time, Error muttered something and went over to him, leaving Dream alone on the sidelines to watch. 

The newlywed watched as Error rearranged the artist’s body and then showed him how to actually strike the ball. Ink mimicked him, able to send it over the net with his fiance’s help. 

“Error!” He cried. “I did it!” 

Ink moved to envelope Error in a hug, but before he could, Blue sent the ball back over, leaving Chara the only one to receive it. She missed, even after diving to get to it. 

“Oh, oops.” Ink laughed softly. 

“Ink…” She grumbled, getting back up. 

“So, I guess this is match point, huh?” Cross grinned at the two of them. 

“We’re making a comeback.” Chara huffed. “Ink was able to get the ball over the net, y’know?” 

“I don’t have much confidence in him hitting any of the next ones.” Cross smirked. 

“Hey!” Ink crossed his arms. “Error, you need to defend my honor.” 

“There’s no honor to defend. You’re terrible at this.” Error shrugged and moved back. 

Ink frowned and turned back to the game. He was going to prove Error wrong. He was going to- 

Get hit in the face with the beach ball, it falling to the ground before he could even think to hit it. 

“We won!” Blue cried, giving Cross a high five. 

“Only because Ink’s an idiot.” Chara sighed. 

“Hey, that’s workplace harassment.” Ink pointed out. 

“We’re not in the workplace.” Chara noted.

Ink grumbled something but moved off the court so Error and Dream could take their places. 

“Go Error! Go Dream!” Ink shouted from the sidelines. “Kick their asses!” 

“Only kick Cross’s ass!” Chara added in her own chant. 

The four players turned to each other. 

“Ready?” Error asked Dream, who grinned and nodded. 

“Ready.” He confirmed. 

It was Blue and Cross’s turn to serve, so Cross stood at the edge of the court, looking straight at Dream as he tossed the ball into the air and… 

Dream winked. 

Cross missed his shot. 

Blue frowned, looking to him. 

“What happened?” He asked. Cross’s eyes narrowed at Dream, who was now grinning broadly. 

“Someone’s playing dirty.” Cross huffed. 

Error glanced sideways at Dream, smirking. 

“Got ‘im.” Dream whispered under his breath. 

“Good one… I like your style.” Error muttered back, both trying to keep their gazes on their opponents. 

Cross lined up to try again, deciding to look at Error this time instead. Just as he was about to serve, Error’s eyes widened and he whipped his head towards Dream. Cross followed, only to find Dream perfectly safe and sound, his look of concentration simply being the cutest thing Cross had ever seen. 

He missed his serve once more. 

“For star’s sake…” Blue huffed, feeling his own competitiveness boiling in his chest. “If you miss one more they get the point.” 

“Sorry…” Cross huffed, readying himself one more time. 

Settling between Error and Dream was the agreement that they were going to mess Cross up again, no matter what. Not only would it help them win, but the two of them were having too much fun to give up what they had started. 

This time, Cross leveled his gaze at the beach ball, trying to avoid outside distractions. But the duo on the opposite end weren’t going to let him off the hook so easily. Just as he tossed the ball into the air, Error kicked sand at Dream. 

“Hey!” Dream cried, earning Cross’s attention just as the ball came back down and hit the sand. 

“You guys are cheating!” Cross yelled. 

“It’s not our fault you got distracted.” Error shrugged. “You’re a lovesick pup.” 

“And Dream’s exploiting it!” Blue huffed. 

“Am not.” Dream crossed his arms. “I can’t help it that he thinks I’m cute.” 

“You are pretty cute.” Cross admitted. 

“Whatever the reason, it’s our turn now.” Error motioned for them to send the ball over. He caught it in his hands and turned to Dream. “You want to serve first?” 

“You would trust me enough to let me?” Dream asked. 

“You’re on the archery team, right? That counts. Here.” Error flicked it to him. “And if you miss, I’m here to catch it.” 

Dream grinned and nodded, taking his place at the edge of the court. He levelled his hand just as he had watched Error teach Ink to do, then tossed the ball in the air and served it over. 

Unlike his darling husband, he didn’t let himself get distracted. He blocked everything out except for his teammate, that he ended up not needing to rely on to get the ball over. 

Blue was the first to get it, pumping it back with a loud twang on the plastic. Error parried, sending it back over to Cross, who in his frustration of being made the fool, sent it a bit too hard over the net. Dream smacked it back, but quickly shook his hands.

“Ow…” He groaned, shaking them. 

“Are you okay?” Cross asked, just as the ball landed next to him. 

“Yeah…” Dream laughed. “But we just got another point.” 

Cross’s eyes narrowed. 

“You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” He growled. Dream laughed once more. 

“Actually, no, but I do appreciate your concern.” 

“I’m serving this time.” Blue huffed, taking up the corner of the court. He wasn’t quite irritated, but he was a bit unnerved at how easily Cross became a puppy dog when his husband was across the court from them. 

Maybe that was what being newlywed did to a person. 

He served the ball over, quickly and easily, only for Dream to send it back with a wide grin on his face. The archer was enjoying himself, finding it quite enjoyable to play on the same team as Error. 

The four of them scrambled as they tried to get one up on the other, moving back and forth quickly. They may have gotten a bit too into it, for Dream moved a bit too far forward and the ball landing only a few inches behind him. He grumbled. 

“Sorry, Error.” He apologized. “I misstepped.” 

Error gave him a soft grin. 

“It’s okay. We were all a little hot headed there. We’ve still got one point on them. We’ve got this.” 

Dream nodded at the pep talk, glad to hear it from Error. On the next serve, Dream quickly dived for the ball, sending it back over the net. He was covered in sand, but it didn’t matter. 

He was having fun. 

Cross was able to send it back, and Error parried. Blue hit it over the net and Dream jumped, spiking it over the net and into the sand. 

“Hot damn.” Error whispered. Dream panted, grinning. 

“What?” He asked, looking at the shocked eyes of those around him. 

“You leapt like a frog.” Cross laughed, moving under the net and gathering his sweaty spouse into his arms. “Pretty impressive.”  

“For someone so short?” Dream asked, pouting. 

“For anyone.” Error laughed. 

“Yay! Error won!” Ink called as Chara came to greet them. “Can we get in the water now?” 

 

* * *

 

The rest of the day was spent playing or frolicking in the waves. Since they were on private property, they didn’t have to worry too much about other people in their space. Ink proudly donned his dinosaur floaty and waded out into the water. Error hung onto the floatation device’s side, every so often complaining about feeling something touch his leg.

“Come on, Error. Stop being a baby.” Ink laughed as they bobbed up and down together in the waves. 

“Me? A baby? That’s rich coming from someone who lost the volleyball game on purpose.” Error huffed, trying to pull up his legs and nearly capsizing them. 

“How’d you figure it out?” Ink blinked. 

“No one misses that badly. You just wanted it to be over because you didn’t want to play.” 

“You got me there.” Ink laughed. “That was definitely not my idea of fun. But hey, you won!”

 “After Dream cheated.” Error joined him in his laughter. “I didn’t think he had it in him.” 

“I think it’s only because the game didn’t really mean anything. If it were more high stakes he wouldn’t have.” Ink shrugged. “But he also got to mess with Cross, which I’m sure he loved.” 

“Don’t we all…” Error sighed. 

“We could kiss right now, it’d be pretty romantic.” Ink pulled his brow bones up suggestively. 

“How is this romantic?” 

“It’s like that one movie where the boat sinks and that guy gives up his spot on the door they both could have fit on…” Ink sighed. 

“Then he dies. Let’s not reenact that, since I’m the one holding on.” 

Ink laughed. 

“You’re no fun.” He whined. 

“I’m barely hanging onto this floaty and I think a shark’s touched my leg like five times. Let’s not push it.” 

“Fine, fine…” Ink began trying to spin the floaty they were on, but Error put an end to that rather quickly. 

“Stop…” He groaned. 

“Sorry… You’re just no fun today, Error.” Ink laughed. “Where’s your sense of adventure?” 

“It’s back on land, where there aren’t any sharks to tickle my toes.” 

“Why are you so worried about them? They only attack people with flesh.” Ink noted. 

“Just because it hasn’t happened yet, doesn’t mean it won’t.” 

“I never knew you were scared of sharks.” 

“I wouldn’t say it’s the sharks… Mostly just the unknown…” 

“That makes sense.” 

They were quiet for a moment before Error spoke up once more. 

“Are you… excited to get married?” He asked. Ink looked to him. 

“If you meant to ask me if Cross and Dream freaking eloping is making me impatient, then no. I’m excited to get married, yes, but I have a family now. I want them there and I want them to be able to participate… Aster and Gaster have pretty crazy schedules, so having the wedding really quickly would leave them out of it.” Ink smiled sadly. “I want them there.”

Error smiled softly at that before pushing himself up enough to kiss Ink on the cheek. 

“I want them there too.” 

 

* * *

 

The rest of the weekend was spent in a peaceful bliss of youth running amok on a beachfront property. 

They played games and swam in the ocean. Chara did indeed teach Cross to grill and other vegetarian recipes so the cooking burden didn’t always have to fall on Dream’s shoulders. On their last night they gathered around a campfire, roasting marshmallows and telling each other scary stories. 

None of the stories were truly terrifying, but Dream ended up curled into Cross all the same, trying to block out the final syllables of Chara’s story about a child at the orphanage becoming possessed by a vengeful, knife-wielding spirit while simultaneously wanting to know how the story ended. 

“I think it’s time me and Dream head back…” Cross looked down at the skeleton who was practically in his lap from trying to get as far into his chest as possible. “I think he’s had enough.” 

Chara laughed. 

“Sorry, Dream! I didn’t realize you were so scared.” 

“I-It’s okay…” Dream gave her a tentative smile. “It was an interesting story…” 

“It didn’t really happen, I promise.” Chara tried to cheer him up. 

They stood and poured water over their campfire, extinguishing it. 

“It’s getting pretty late,” Blue admitted. “We should all probably get some rest. We have to leave early tomorrow.” 

“Wait!” Ink jolted as if struck. “I haven’t collected any seashells yet!” 

“It’s a bit dark now, don’t you think?” Dream asked, looking at their surroundings. 

Error silently pulled his phone out and turned on the flashlight. 

“We’ve got this.” He gave Dream a grin. “We’ll meet you guys back inside.” 

The others nodded and left the two alone to hunt for seashells in the dark. Error and Ink went along the seashore, letting the waves move over their bare feet while they held their flip flops in their hands. Error used his spare hand to hold his phone out and Ink used his to pluck up interesting shells, stuffing them into the pockets of his swim trunks. 

“These things are cool, but it’s not as fun as I thought it’d be.” Ink frowned, standing up straight once more after finding a particularly pleasing shell. 

“It might be more fun during the day.” Error shrugged. “Or maybe when you’re five.” 

“Being a parentless child strikes again.” Ink sighed. Error gently wrapped his arm around the artist’s shoulders, pulling him tightly into his side. 

“Not anymore.” Error reminded him. Ink grinned. 

“Not anymore.” He agreed. 

They walked along the beach like that, Error turning off the flashlight on his phone and tucking it back into his pocket. It was quiet out and the moon’s reflection bounced off the waves. Their summer vacation was coming to an end, but Ink was thankful it had happened in the first place. He would never be able to think about the ocean without remembering his friends and his lover, and the taste of salt on his tongue. But there was still one thing unchecked on his list for his trip. 

He looked up at Error before quickly gripping his hand and pulling him into the ocean, but only so far as where the waves hit the middle of their calves. 

“Ink…?” 

But Error didn’t get to finish his question before Ink pressed his mouth to his, finally getting his kiss in the ocean. Although surprised, Error was quick to return it, moving his free hand to cup Ink’s cheek, pressing his mouth more urgently into his fiance’s. 

Slowly, they pulled away, Error giving the other a tender, but ravenous look. 

“You weren’t kidding about wanting to kiss in the ocean, huh?” He asked. Ink shook his head. 

“Nope. And I thought you would have figured that out.” 

“Sorry…” Error bent down and gave him another, but chaste, kiss. “There, that one’s for making you wait.” 

“You’re forgiven.” Ink grinned. Then he yelped. “Something touched my foot!” 

“I told you!” Error laughed and chased after him as he ran back to the shore. 

The lazy days of summer were almost over, but the new tidings autumn would bring them were almost upon them. 

But not all tidings are good. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I just wanted to say, thank you all so much for the wonderful comments you've left on the past chapters! I haven't had the emotional stamina to reply to them, but I promise I read each and every one of them and I'm so thankful to have such great readers like you guys! Hopefully I can get back to replying to you guys with this chapter! I'm feeling better, though still not quite on point. 
> 
> Also: There won't be an update next week. I've decided to take a scheduled break (for once) to work on other projects I've got going on before classes really start back in full swing. I've got a few projects going on, one I've hinted several times on my Tumblr. Since that's a project I'm completing before posting it, I'd like to get the first rough draft down as quickly as possible. 
> 
> Thanks for your understanding! I hope my big project will be well worth the time off. ^_^


	38. You win some, you lose some

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As seasons change, so do people.

As the days began to grow shorter and the promise of a new school year loomed on the horizon, Pale began to wonder if he had done something to upset Template. 

But if he had, he worried that it might have been too long gone for him to properly apologize to his friend. 

He hadn’t noticed it at first, but he certainly began to notice it over the last stretch of summer vacation. Template was prone to anxiety and freakouts and Pale was usually the one to weather the storm, to calm him down and ease him back into the land of rationality. But for weeks, every time he tried to help his friend, Template would shoot out of his seat and run off to the other side of the art gallery. Ink’s howling laughter would follow after him and Pale would be left confused and wanting for an explanation. 

As they entered the art gallery for their final day as interns, Pale was in somewhat of a mood and Template had kept his teeth clenched tightly the entire time they rode the subway. Pale wasn’t one for bursts of anger or sadness, but he was coming as close to it as he had since his parents completed their divorce. 

“You seem pretty…” Chara looked at him, a soft look on her features for once. “Not yourself.” 

“...” Pale looked towards where Template and Ink stood, both of them hunched over something like conspirators. “It’s Temp.” 

“Yeah?” 

“....” Pale looked back to his mentor, noting how blanched she seemed that day. She had been liked that all week during his shifts. He wanted to ask her about it, to express his concern, but kids weren’t supposed to worry about the affairs of adults, or so said his mother. 

“I don’t think he likes me anymore.” He finished. Chara smiled softly and patted him on the head. 

“I’m sure he does.” She tried to reassure him. 

“No…” Pale sighed. “He doesn’t talk to me anymore, and he always runs away from me.” 

“That’s… troubling.” She admitted. “You could try asking him? And face-to-face. Maybe corner him, too, so he can’t run away from you.” 

“...” Pale looked down at his shoes, then slowly nodded. He looked back up. “Can I… ask you something?” 

“Of course.” Chara grinned at him. 

“Are you okay?” 

“Why do you ask?” 

“...You’re very… pale.” He wanted to laugh at the irony. “Tuesday and today.” 

“Ah, that.” Chara laughed, albeit tiredly. “I keep getting sick from gas station burritos in the morning. You’d think that place would be shut down by now.” 

Pale screwed his face up at her. 

“Why do you keep going back?” 

“Because they’re so  _ good _ , Pale!” She cried with a lilt of laughter. “And they’ve got the best little hot sauce packets…” 

She sighed, then smiled. 

“Thanks for worrying about me… I’m going to miss you…” She sniffed, tears coming into her eyes. “I’m just going to keep you… You’ll never have to go back…” 

She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close. He might have protested, but being hugged once after all this time felt nice, so he let her have her way. Though his face remained impassive, he enjoyed the sentiment. 

“AHEM.” 

The two of them looked up, spotting Ink grinning at them, eye lights swirling amusedly. 

“What? We’re having a moment.” Chara hissed. 

“I need to talk to you. Alone. Preferably in the basement.” Ink’s eyes never lost their merriment. Pale frowned at him. He knew something. 

“Okay…?” Chara slowly pulled back from her intern. “Sorry, Pale. Looks like I’m needed for some kind of buffoonery.” 

Pale simply waved a goodbye to her as the two of them sauntered off and down the stairs, leaving an empty gallery to him and Template. 

Who, by the way, looked like he was about to have full blown panic attack and possibly thrown up his lunch. 

Pale had half a mind to not even act like he had seen Template. To just forget he was there. But he sighed and started towards him anyway. 

“Temp, are you okay” He asked slowly. Template was looking at him like a deer in headlights, but with the added bonus of that deer knowing its death was imminent. 

“Yeah- I-” Template fidgeted with something behind his back. “JUST TAKE IT!” 

He thrust a paper bag into Pale’s hands before sprinting down the stairs to the basement. Pale opened his mouth to call after him, but he was much too defeated to say anything. Instead, he turned his attention to the bag now in his hands. It was the kind one would take their lunch to school in, small and light. He sighed and reached in. 

He pulled out two things: a hand painted postcard and a folded piece of notebook paper. Brows furrowed in confusion, he stared at the postcard, looking at the intricate strokes of a lakeside scene. There were carefully painted pine trees as well as a dock with a small rowboat tied to it with rope. But most prominently were the two figures seated at the end of the dock, almost tiny in comparison to the rest of the painting, one dark and one light, but both of them holding hands as they watched the setting sun.

It was them. 

And it was the lake Pale and Template went with his family to every summer before the divorce. 

Better still, it was a traditional piece of artwork. 

Pale knew how much Template preferred digital. 

He frowned and turned the card over. 

Words that had been written in pencil were now erased, Pale guessing that Template had run out of space for what he wanted to say, leaving the piece of notebook paper in the bag as well. But scrawled over the erased monologue was Template’s best attempt at calligraphy that read: 

“Together No Matter What” 

Pale almost smiled. 

But he still had something else to read. 

He unfolded the piece of paper. 

_ “Dear Pale,  _

_ Sorry I have to tell you this in a note, but I almost pass out every time I even try to pretend to tell you, so here goes.  _

_ I know you’re having a hard time right now. And I’ll be there for you, no matter what! I’ll be your best friend forever. That’ll never change.  _

_ But I want you to know that… I like you. I like you as more than a friend. I have for so long now. When you confessed to me, I was shocked, and I thought it was just the whole divorce thing and I panicked. (You know how I do that.) I wanted you to know, because you deserve to know, even if you don’t feel that way about me anymore. You told me, so I told you.  _

_ I’ll always be there for you, no matter what.  _

_ Yours Truly,  _

_ Template” _

Pale stared at the note for a hard, long moment before looking up at the ceiling and beginning to laugh. It was the kind of laugh that warmed its owner from their core and the kind that brought tears to their eyes. 

“What’s he laughing at?” Ink whispered from his, Chara’s, and Template’s vantage point on the stairs. 

“Oh stars, I broke him!” Template exclaimed quietly. 

“You didn’t break him…” Chara tilted her head, watching the stone face she had gotten used to all summer suddenly light up in unadulterated glee. “You just… made him not be Pale anymore.” 

“Fudge!” 

“Template?” Pale turned towards the stairs, looking straight at the trio who were hiding in it’s protective darkness. 

“Y-yeah?” The other called back. 

“Shhh!” Chara hissed. “You’re not supposed to answer!” 

“Can we talk?” Pale asked, his laughter having worn off but a grin was still on his face, shocking the two art gallery employees to the point they couldn’t take their eyes off him. 

“Sure!” Template was quick to start moving up the stairs, though his soul was racing rapidly. 

“Alone?” Pale added. 

“Fine…” Ink and Chara huffed together, really going to the basement this time Besides, they had prepared something they needed to get ready. 

“What is it?” Template asked when he reached Pale, as if he had ran a mile to get there. 

“Do you mean it?” Pale asked, motioning to the piece of paper. 

“Of course I mean it…” Template sighed, looking away. “I would never… Say anything to you I didn’t really mean.” 

Pale laughed again, and the sound of its resurgence landed in Template’s marrow and sunk deep within. How long had it been since he had heard it, as joyous as it was just then? He hadn’t realized how severe the drought had been until that very moment. 

“What’s so funny?” Template asked, but before he could get an answer, his best friend placed his mouth on his his, an awkward but welcome kiss. He slowly pulled away. 

“I’m just really happy.” He smiled, laughter still bubbling out of him in spurts. “The happiest I’ve been since… since…” 

Template stared at him, almost frozen, but still letting the taste of Pale linger on his mouth. 

“Y-you can do it again… If… If it makes you  _ that _ happy…” Template tried, looking away. 

Pale took the offer. 

He kissed his friend again, then again, and again until his maniacal laughter had spread to the other, as if stealing kisses were the way to pass an infection of laughter. 

“Okay, settle down children,” Chara huffed as the two mentors came back up the stairs. Pale and Template flung away from each other, eyes wide. The manager laughed. “Stars, we’re not your parents or your teachers. We’re not going to send you to baby jail for kissing.” 

“I’ve been telling Template this whole time he can curse around me, too.” Ink sighed, having not succeeded in getting the young Error look alike to say one curse word all summer. 

“He doesn’t curse.” Pale said matter-of-factly. 

“Is that a challenge?” Template huffed. 

“Say it.” Ink encouraged. “Say ‘fuck.’” 

“Okay, I’ll do it!” Template stood tall, puffing out his chest. “F…” 

“That’s it! You can do it!” Ink grinned, eye lights going wild. 

“F...u...ck…” Template slowly got out. 

“You did it!” Ink cheered. 

“Baby’s first ‘fuck’... I’m so proud…” Chara sniffled. 

“You can’t ever go back.” Pale noted. 

“I didn’t like it.” Template frowned. “I don’t think I’ll say one again.” 

“Anyway,” Chara dabbed the tears out of her eyes. “We got each of you a little something to say thank you and maybe help you guys out in the future.” 

She produced two gift bags from behind her back, one pink, one purple. She shrugged an apology for the colors - it was all she had had at the time - and handed the rightful bag to its recipient. 

Pale opened his, finding a plethora of paint brushes and paints. 

“My personal favorites.” Ink commented. 

Template found a few art books and a certificate for software he didn’t already have, but had been complaining about wanting the entire time he had been working. 

“Woah,” He whispered. 

“Dig in there some more, boys. It gets better.” Chara winked. 

At the bottom of their bags they each found a letter awarding them $1,000 scholarships from Chara’s family. 

“This is amazing!” Template cried. “Thank you so much!” 

“Yeah, thank you…” Even Pale smiled at his own letter, feeling a bit more hopeful for the future with just a simple piece of paper. 

“Thank you for all your hard work over the summer.” Chara smiled at them softly, feeling herself tear up again. “I’m gonna miss you guys…” 

“We can come visit!” Template was quick to promise. 

“Ugh, you’ve been so weepy lately. What’s gotten into you?” Ink sighed, watching the human woman continue to wipe tears off her cheeks. 

“You’re not sad?!” She huffed. Ink looked to the two, but especially at Template. He smiled sadly. 

“Yeah… I guess I kind of am…” He admitted. 

“Then we’ll definitely come visit! Right, Pale?” Template said quickly. Pale simply nodded. 

“Okay, well,” Chara sighed softly. “We brought cake too, if you guys want to go get some.” 

“Cake?!” Template grinned. “C’mon, Pale, let’s go!” 

He gently took his friend’s hand and pulled him towards and then down the stairs. 

“Looks like they’re gonna be okay.” Ink grinned to himself. “See, I’ll be a great parent.” 

“You literally just got a fifteen year old to swear in front of you.” 

“It’s cute how you think I wouldn’t egg on my own children to swear in front of me.” 

* * *

Geno frowned as he stood over the troughs filled with plants, looking down at the withered tops of the carrots he had vowed to take care of the moment Reaper kind of broke up with him. 

They hadn’t been dating, but it felt just as bad. 

(And he did over text, too. What a lazy ass.) 

So, the almost-pediatrician took up the job of watering the poor carrots that Reaper had been. After all, why would the pathologist take of them? But Geno proved to be worse at taking care of plants than he was anything else. He could take care of animals, parent kids AND treat them for illness, and he considered himself a mostly functioning member of society. 

So why were plants so hard? 

He pulled his scarf over his mouth to hide his intense frown as he weighed his options. He could be watering too little. But he had searched for the proper care requirements and watered exactly enough. Was it the waning season? Could they just not keep up with the threat of autumn looming over them? He didn’t think that was quite right. It was still warm every day, though the days were becoming shorter. Perhaps less sunlight, then? Yet the garden had been strategically built in a spot that would see the most sun. There was only one other explanation: he was over watering them. 

Or rather, 

_ They _ were over watering them.

Geno sighed. 

Reaper was a good monster. 

He came off as creepy and yes, he had been a little bit in the beginning, but once Geno had set firm boundaries, Reaper had respected them. He groaned at his own agony and moved away from the trough to the bench where he and Reaper had sat after he lost his first patient. 

He balled his hands into fits and clenched and released them, over and over again as he agonized over what he had done. He had gotten scared. Ran away. 

He had hurt Reaper without ever meaning to. But he was hurt all the same and Geno knew he couldn’t just run to him and beg him for forgiveness. It wouldn’t be enough. 

_ “You should be happy.” Error had told him. “He seems to make you happy.”  _

_ “But he’s weird.” Geno groaned.  _

_ “Yeah? So are you. He might literally cut up dead bodies but you only live for your little brothers. Just try talking to him again. Make your intentions clear. The worst thing he can say is no, and that’s what you’ve already got.” _

Geno tapped his foot to the rhythm of a nonexistent song. Error was right. He needed to be happy. And when he thought of the face Reaper made when he talked about his damned guinea pig, he melted. 

In a flurry he stood, angrily kicked over the watering can and turned- 

“Slow down there, karate kid.” 

Geno stopped in his tracks, turning to face the intruder. 

“Huh. I guess you’ve been watering it too. No wonder it’s been looking like shit.” He had that lazy grin on his face, like he didn’t care, but Geno could see that his shoulders were tight because he hadn’t been expecting to find the resident doctor there. 

“I uh… Yeah.” Geno floundered.

“Guess I won’t be needing this.” Reaper gestured the water bottle in his hands. “All right then. Guess I’ll see you around.” 

“Wait, please,” Geno gasped. Reaper turned around to face him. 

“Yeah?” His grin didn’t falter. 

Geno tried to straighten his spine, trying to make himself look stronger but at the moment he felt anything but. 

“I…” He tried, but realized he wasn’t going to be able to say what he wanted to. Instead, he settled for shuffling over to the more senior doctor, looked him right in the eye, and then dropped his forehead onto his chest, gently grabbing onto Reaper’s coat with one of his hands. 

“Geno…” Reaper had half a mind to push him away. But the defeat he had glimpsed in the other’s face stopped him completely. 

“I’m sorry…” Geno whispered. “I’m so, so sorry.”

“Sorry for what, buddy?” Reaper made no move to be comforting, but he didn’t back away either. 

“For being a piece of shit to someone I care about. I did have crazy stuff going on, but I was also scared. Scared of what I felt… feel for you. And I lashed out at the person I never wanted to hurt.” He slowly pulled back, not meeting Reaper’s gaze. “You just… should know I’m sorry.” 

Reaper studied him, his grin slowly sliding off his own face into a soft, concerned frown. 

“You did hurt me.” Reaper stated. Geno took it with a graceful nod. “But shit, Geno. I can’t get you out of my head no matter how hard I try. You’re terrible for me.” 

Geno looked up at that, frowning. 

“You don’t have to have anything to do with me.” He said. Reaper’s face pulled back into a smile; a genuine one. 

“I want to, Geno… I want everything to do with you.” He breathed and slowly took Geno’s face into his hands, eyeing him as if he were a beautiful piece of artwork and holding him as tenderly as a prized jewel. Then he brought their foreheads together, closing his eyes and marveling at how close Geno had let him get. 

Geno didn’t move away. His breath hitched and his soul beat expeditiously and he closed his eyes, losing himself in Reaper. 

Slowly, the pathologist pulled away, still cradling Geno’s face in his hands. 

“Are we good?” He asked softly. Geno smiled. 

“Yeah, we’re good… And it’s my turn to take you on a date.” 

* * *

 

Nightmare was nonplussed about the prospect of helping Dream and Cross move in together. He had mostly gotten over his bitterness of having Cross choose Dream rather than him; he had two wonderful monsters in his life he wouldn’t trade for the idiot any day. But moving was a pain no matter who it was and he had only been promised pizza and beer (or whatever Dream bought) at the end of the ordeal. He couldn’t even get Killer to join him to make things better. 

_ “No can do,” The pre-law student said when he asked. “That’s move in weekend for the freshmen and the org is doing a ton of events. I’ll make sure to steal a frisbee for you, though.” _

The worst part of the whole thing was when he got up and into Cross’s apartment, he found there to be little they actually needed to grab. He was only taking a few things, and his apartment had been a furnished student one, so they weren’t taking any furniture. He glared at his brother’s boyfriend when he saw the few boxes stacked in a corner of the room. 

“You really needed me? For this?” He asked. Cross smiled apologetically and shrugged his shoulders. 

“Yeah? I’m too weak to get these all by myself.” Cross faked struggling with one of the boxes. Nightmare let out a long, hard sigh while rolling his eyes dramatically. 

“You’re impossible.” He huffed. 

“Okay, I’ve got the car parked and the flashers on. We gotta move fast!” Dream came into the room, looking harried. His eyes also landed on the small number of boxes. “Is that it?” 

“Why are you guys judging me so much for not owning more than I need?” Cross grumbled, going to the stack and loading two into his arms. That left one box for each of the brothers, which they promptly took. 

“Goodbye, room.” Cross said over his shoulder as he passed out of the doorway. “Not gonna miss ya.” 

“Goodbye, Horror.” He said when he got to the living room, aiming it at his roommate’s empty room. One of his hand’s fingers curled into the box until his middle finger stood out quite prominently. “See you in hell!” 

“Your boyfriend’s really weird.” Nightmare frowned at his brother, who smiled shyly and blushed. 

“Y-yeah…” Dream looked back to him. “You haven’t seen the worst of it yet.”  

“Don’t want to…” Nightmare followed the other two out and to the elevator. “These boxes are also really light.” 

“Sorry?” Cross looked over his shoulder. “You did get my underwear box.” 

Nightmare scowled and had half a mind to drop the box right then and there. Cross laughed brightly. 

“I’m kidding! Most of my underwear’s already at your brothers place.” 

“That’s worse!” 

“Can you two, like, not?” Dream sighed. He was all nerves that day and the small disruptions of sound were setting him off. It felt like someone was starting to claw at the back of his eye sockets. 

“Sorry sir.” Cross half heartedly apologized. “I guess I won’t have fun with my good friend anymore.” 

“I’m not your friend.” Nightmare pouted. 

“He’s just saying that.” Cross assured Dream. 

They loaded the boxes into the trunk before driving off to Dream’s apartment. Nightmare still scowled the whole ride, and Dream began thinking that this hadn’t been such a good plan. But he had been putting this off for weeks and had let the anxiety grow to such an unmanageable level that Cross finally took the leap for him. 

After getting the boxes inside, and Nightmare sitting neatly on the couch, Sunshine the cat nestled in his lap, they decided it was time. Dream sat next to him and Cross perched on the arm of the couch, both of them staring him down with a strange look that made him want to run for the hills. 

“Why are you guys looking at me like that? Did someone die?” He asked, only half-joking. 

“No. But, um…” Dream twisted the hem of his T-shirt in his hands. “We do have something to tell you.” 

Cross nodded, letting his partner do most of the talking. It was his place to tell Nightmare, really. 

Nightmare looked between them, frowning. When he couldn’t come up with any kind of scenario that would need them watching him like a fragile child, he simply spat, 

“What?”

“We uh…” Dream swallowed thickly and Cross placed a hand on his shoulder, helping to ground him. “Over King’s Weekend, we got married.” 

Nightmare laughed. 

“Okay, wow. That’s a terrible joke. If you wanted to tell me something worse than the actual news to kind of lower my expectations, you got me. What is it, really?” 

“That’s it.” Cross spoke up. “That’s the truth. You can see our marriage certificate if you want.” 

Nightmare did not want to see it. He looked to the cat in his lap, staring hard at her soft fur. He could feel something rising inside him. Something that was a mix of anger and outright rejection. 

“You got married without me?” He slowly whispered, unable to look at his so-called brother. 

“Yes…” Dream wasn’t going to deny that fact. It wasn’t something that  _ could _ be denied. “We eloped, Night. No one was there.” 

Finally, Nightmare looked at him, a snarl on his face and his eyes almost glowing with the intense rage burning inside of him. 

“I should have been there, Dream! I don’t even care that it’s been like two fucking months that you’ve been together! Am I not your family? Your brother?” He couldn’t sit still and jumped up, Sunshine making a noise of protest as she moved to the floor. 

“Night!” Dream was quick to his feet as well. “That’s not… That’s not what happened!” 

“It  _ is _ what happened!” Nightmare was quivering, his body threatening to break. “Just admit it, Dream! You didn’t want me there! You’ve  _ never _ wanted me there.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?! I love you, Nightmare! I didn’t think you’d care.” 

“Of course I’d care! I’m your brother! Or am I not anymore?!” 

“ _ You _ were the one who stopped acting like my brother!” Dream yelled. “ _ You _ pulled away! I tried so hard! I thought you hated me! Why would I think otherwise? You only come to see me because of the fucking cat!” 

Nightmare could feel something breaking inside him. Something he had tried to hold back for years. But hearing Dream turn the situation around on him made something crack and splinter. He didn’t know what was coming, but he knew he couldn’t stop himself. 

“Me?! As soon as you had friends you left me behind.” Nightmare sneered. “I was bullied, harassed, and you did fuck all to stop it.” 

“Nightmare-” 

“Hey, guys, calm down! This isn’t getting anywhere.” Cross began moving to try and place himself between the brothers, just in case. 

“Shut up! Both of you!” Nightmare gripped his head as it began to pound. He could feel it. The water from the dam beginning to flow. He could feel it welling in his eye sockets, begging to escape. He glowered at Dream, seething and fuming, teeth in a snarl. 

“I hate you so damn much, Dream.” 

Those were the magic words. 

The black inkyness he had seen flow from Killer’s eyes so many times began to flood from his. But it also came from his mouth and anywhere else it could find. He coughed and choked, the sensation making him drop to his knees and clutch at his throat. 

“Nightmare?!” Dream screamed as he went to his brother’s side, sobbing and trying to pull the liquid off of him, but it clung to the eldest twin without remittance. “Cross! Call 911!” 

“Dream…?” Nightmare couldn’t see anymore; everything was dark and he could have sworn he felt something writhing in his eye sockets. 

“I’m here,” Dream’s voice was strained, as if he were crying, but Nightmare could feel him place his hands on his cheeks. “I’m not leaving you.” 

“Dream,” His own voice cracked. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t-” 

With a resounding crack, his bones began breaking to make way for the sludge.

He remembered screaming. 

Then, the pain made him lose consciousness. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's not much to say except that I want you all to know the ending scene was titled "It's goop time" in my Google Doc folder. What can I say, I'm hilarious. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> (Still working on catching up on comments! I promise I love you guys and appreciate you!)


	39. Two Little Apple Seeds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Because brothers don’t let each other wander in the dark alone.” -Jolene Perry 

_ “Dream! Dream!”  _

_ The calls echoed across the lush backyard, filtering through the spaces between the leaves on the giant oak tree growing in the center of the yard. The small skeleton child turned around, trying to find where the chants were coming from, only to look up and see his brother balancing precariously on a flexible branch in the tree, a grin plastered on his face.  _

_ “Nightmare?! Get down! You’re gonna get hurt!” The youngest twin yelled back up to him.  _

_ “No way!” Nightmare laughed, beginning to bounce on the limb. “Look! I’m that monkey from-”  _

_ He slipped.  _

_ Nightmare began tumbling down towards Earth at a rate that Dream could have sworn was faster than the speed of light. But he ran, holding out his hands and willing his barely-there magic to work so he could maybe, just maybe, catch him before he got any further cuts.  _

_ Luckily, the thought of his brother getting a serious injury was enough to spark a reaction, and he was able to slow him down just before he hit the ground.  _

_ “Night!” Dream cried, going to him. “I told you!”  _

_ “Yeah, yeah…” Nightmare huffed, flicking leaves off his clothes. He was scraped and scratched, bruises sure to form within a few hours. “Just don’t tell mom.”  _

_ “I won’t tell mom.” Dream pouted. “But we need to get you patched up before she sees.”  _

_ The two quietly opened the screen door leading into their house, Dream peeking around the corner to look out for Nim, their mother who Dream secretly thought was a goddess. Or a witch. But goddess sounded better, so he stuck with that.  _

_ He heard her in the bathroom, so he took Nightmare’s hand and quickly tugged him into their bedroom, moving to dig a first aid kit from his toy box that he had stolen from the kitchen for this exact reason. Nim knew, of course, but she pretended not to notice its disappearance. It was rather cute, she thought. She only hoped her boys would continue to take care of each other like that forever.  _

_ Nightmare hopped onto his bed, awaiting the marvelous medical assistance of Nurse Dream, who always took care of him when he hurt himself. Unless it was too serious. Then their mother stepped in and patched him up with some kind of tree bark or herbal concoction.  _

_ “This might hurt.” Dream warned, putting peroxide onto a cotton ball.  _

_ “That’s what you always say and it never- OW!”  _

_ “Shhh!” Dream hissed and Nightmare quieted down, clenching his teeth as Dream continued to dab his minor wounds, placing bandaids of his favorite superhero over them when he was done. “Okay, I think I got them all.”  _

_ “Took you long enough…” Nightmare huffed, watching his brother pack the things away once more. “...Thanks, Dream.”  _

_ The other looked up at him, smiling.  _

_ “Of course! I’ll always be there to help you… And maybe someday, my magic will kick in…” Dream sighed wistfully, wanting nothing more than to have an ounce of the healing magic the doctors had.  _

_ “It’ll come.” Nightmare assured him with a smile. “Besides, you’d make the best doctor ever! It’s gotta happen!”  _

_ Dream laughed sadly.  _

_ “Yeah… but most monsters-”  _

_ “It doesn’t matter when most monsters develop healing magic!” Nightmare hopped up, gently taking one of his teddy bears and stuffing it into his brother’s arms. “We’re not most monsters! Mom created us! She made us from apple seeds, remember? And trees take a long time to grow… So it’ll happen! But not until it’s ready.”  _

_ Dream giggled, holding the bear close.  _

_ “You know that’s a lie she told us because she doesn’t want to tell us where babies come from, right?”  _

_ “Have you  _ **_seen_ ** _ mom? She could totally make us out of apple seeds! That’s easy peasy for the goddess of everything!”  _

_ Dream laughed harder.  _

_ “Okay, okay… I believe you.” He laughed once more. “Thanks, Nightmare…”  _

_ Nightmare simply smiled and sat on the floor next to his brother, leaning on his arm.  _

_ “We’ll always have each other… right?” Dream asked. Nightmare looked at him gently.  _

_ “Of course. We’re brothers, right? Nothing can ever tear us apart!”  _

 

When Nightmare opened his eyes, he was immediately aware that he was in a hospital. The smell and constant beeping in his ear were the first hints, but the stabbing pain of an IV through his bone and into his marrow was the one that stood out the most. He wanted to rip it out, but when he went to do so he was stopped short by the sight of his own hand. 

It was covered in goop. 

Or, what was most likely to be what Killer had. 

“Night? Are you awake?” 

He wanted to snarll, ‘of course I’m awake!’ but when he turned his head to do so, the sight of his brother sitting in a chair beside his bed, bags under his eyes from lack of sleep and clothes impossibly wrinkled, stopped him short. 

“Yeah, I’m awake.” He whispered, his voice husky with disuse. “What happened?” 

“Well… First, you’ve been asleep for three days… Second, you’re currently in the ICU because… Well, you’ve had a really rough time.” Dream slowly smiled. “But I’m happy you’re awake.” 

“...” Nightmare couldn’t say he felt the same. He looked down at himself, at the sludge that was clinging to his body. 

“That’s… what they called ‘liquid hate.’” Dream slowly began to explain what the doctors had told him. 

“Ah… So what Killer has…” Nightmare grumbled. Dream slowly nodded. 

“Yeah… But… your case is pretty severe.” 

“Obviously.” 

“And… it kind of broke your bones trying to get out…” 

Nightmare turned his one good eye back onto him, urging him to continue. 

“And, good news, after the doctors healed you, you got taller!” Dream tried to grin to really sell the point, but he faltered and it came out as an optimistic grimace. 

Nightmare looked down at himself, snorting slightly with the realization that Dream was right and he had indeed “grown” since the incident. He was probably at least as tall, if not an inch taller, than Killer now. He’d hate that. 

But speaking of… 

“Where’s Killer? Cross?” 

“...Only family is allowed in the ICU. Cross could technically come but…” Dream shrugged. “I thought it might be best if only I was here when you woke up.” 

“Because of how I reacted when you told me you got married?” Nightmare frowned. 

“Well… yeah.” Dream sighed, rubbing the back of his skull. “I’m sorry, Nightmare… I really am… I…” 

“It’s… whatever, now.” He sighed. 

“It’s not whatever… You have a physical manifestation of what I’ve done to you all over you.” 

“Dream…” Nightmare sighed. He wanted to be upset, or in a mindset to lash out, but the IV must have had some kind of emotion-numbing drug in it because he just… couldn’t muster it. “You should’ve let me be there, and I’ll be upset about that for a while. But… it kind of looks like I’ve been holding a lot of this in. And I’ve obviously hurt you too. From what you said.” 

Dream frowned and looked away. 

“I guess… Mom’s death really messed us up, huh?” Nightmare finally sighed. 

“...” Dream looked away. “I think it’s more than that…” 

“Yeah… I think it is too.” 

“Can we… Will you let me try to be better?” Dream looked up at him, and Nightmare could see a swell of tears building in his eye sockets, familiar and foreign all at once. His brother seemed older than he ever had and simultaneously more tired than he could ever imagine Dream being. 

“Yeah…” He slowly grumbled. “And… And I’ll try to do better too… It’s not just you. I just… always blame you.” 

“It’s okay. I’m kind of an idiot sometimes…” Dream smiled and gently reached forward, taking Nightmare’s hand in his. The patient wrinkled his nose. 

“Are you okay touching that?” 

Dream laughed. 

“I’ve been holding your hand this whole time…” He paused. “Besides, nothing could ever stand in the way of me comforting you.” 

“Not even gross sewer sludge coating my entire body?” 

“It’s not sewer sludge! It doesn’t even smell, see?” Dream lifted their hands to Nightmare’s nose, who despite himself, took a small sniff. 

“Wow, you’re right… For once.” 

“I’m right more often than you’ll admit…” Dream laughed again. “I guess I should probably go tell the doctor you’re awake… They can probably start moving you to the general hospital and then Killer can come see you… He’s been in the waiting room this whole time, you know? That’s a little weird for a roommate…” 

Nightmare frowned and grit his teeth. 

“I… Don’t know if I’m ready for him to see me like this… And, he’s not just a roommate.” 

Dream quirked a brow. Nightmare sighed and rolled his eye. 

“He’s my boyfriend.” 

“Night!” 

“What?!” 

“I can’t believe you got a boyfriend and didn’t tell me!” 

“How was I supposed to tell you? I was fucking my roommate because I was mad you were dating Cross and now we’re together?” 

“...You were upset I’m with Cross?” 

Nightmare sighed, gently rubbing his temple and trying to ignore the vile sensation of sludge moving against sludge as he did so. 

“I guess everything’s just coming out now. I liked him before you dated him. He obviously didn’t like me the same way. But really, I don’t care about that anymore. I really don’t.”

“...” Dream frowned. “I’m sorry… I guess I really am out of it, sometimes.” 

“It’s not something I’d want to tell you…” Nightmare grumbled. “But it worked out.” 

Dream smiled softly at that. 

“Yeah, I guess it did. Let me go get the doctor. He can probably explain things better than I can.” 

* * *

 

After Dream had alerted Nightmare’s doctor, he went to the waiting room to find the skeleton his brother now called his boyfriend. He wanted to leave Nightmare alone with the physician so he could ask any questions he didn’t want to in front of Dream. 

When Killer saw him come in, he scrambled from the chair he had almost been falling asleep in and went to him. 

“Is he awake?” He gasped. Dream nodded slowly with a smile. 

“He’s with the doctor now… Hopefully they’re going to change him to a regular room soon, but…” 

He frowned. 

“But what?” Killer asked. 

“But he’s not ready to see you yet.” Dream finished. Killer’s mouth curled into a snarl. 

“You’re lying.” 

Dream shook his head. 

“I wish I wasn’t. I really do. He literally just told me you two are dating and then says he doesn’t want you to see him like that.” 

“See him like that?” Killer laughed bitterly. “He’s seen me at my worst, he should know I can take whatever he’s got.” 

“I think he just wants some time to… process everything. I don’t think it’s personal. He’s taking everything really well right now, but when those drugs wear off…” Dream frowned. 

“Where is he going to go once he’s released if he doesn’t want to see me?” Killer was slowly losing any momentum he had. 

“He can come live with me-” 

“And Cross? The two people that put him here in the first place?!” 

Dream glared at him. 

“He’s  _ my _ brother, no matter what, and dammit, if he says so, I’ll make Cross live somewhere else until Nightmare’s ready to go home! I know you’re upset, but you have no right to say things like that.” He hissed. Killer scowled. 

“I do too! If it hadn’t been for you, he wouldn’t be here in the first place.” 

“I know, okay? I know. But just because you’re pissed he doesn’t want to see you doesn’t mean you can take it out on me. Look, I promise to talk to him. I think being with you would be best for him.” He smiled sadly. “You were there for him when I wasn’t. You’re better for him. But I’m not going to force him to do anything he doesn’t want to.” 

Killer wanted to retort something. Anything. But the younger (and less good looking, if Killer had to compare) twin had a point and there wasn’t anything he could do. He slowly eased the tension in his jaw and took a breath to relax his shoulders. 

“Okay. You’re right. I’m sorry, Dream.” He said quietly. “Do you think he’d like flowers? If I sent them up there with you?”

Dream smiled. 

“Honestly? Probably not. Why don’t you look for a plant instead?” 

“Ah, the plant.” Killer smiled knowingly. Nightmare had always talked of having a hoard of plants in lieu of allowing himself to have a pet cat, but he never got any. 

“I’ll get ‘im the best plant in New Home City.” 

 

* * *

 

Nightmare listened patiently while the doctor talked. He was rather calm, but the monster sitting at his side while he explained the intricacies of his condition didn’t seem too concerned nor surprised at his lack of emotion. In fact, it was one of the things the doctor pointed out first when he arrived. 

“You might not be feeling too much in the way of extreme emotions,” He explained, “It’s because we have to make sure you’re stable before we take you off. It’s a routine measure for anyone coming in with this illness. The calmer you are, the better we can treat you.” 

Nightmare nodded. 

“You’ve also grown quite a bit. That’s pretty unusual, but you’ve been building that up for years. Technically, it wasn’t inside you this whole time. You’re magic created it the moment your personal threshold was passed and it fed off all those feelings you’ve kept in.” 

“Is it permanent?” He asked. 

“Not usually. But you have a severe case, Nightmare. Luckily, it’s treatable.” 

“Will I look this way for the rest of my life?” 

“You may, or you may not. Some people take to treatment, and some don’t. For some, treatment may only work to a certain extent. It varies from monster to monster.” 

“What’s the treatment like?” 

“Therapy along with prescription medication. That’s the general treatment. You can always elect out, but this is what is recommended.” 

“What kind of medication?” 

“That would be up to the judgement of your treatment team. See, liquid hate is something that isn’t ‘one-size fits all’. It can come in many different ways, and the treatment has to be tailored for a specific monster. We don’t have the resources here to treat you, but we’ll be connecting you with resources outside.” 

“How long will it take until it goes away?” 

“Monsters with cases like yours… Tend to have their symptoms lessened within a few years. However, it doesn’t go away. Even if you’re able to control it to the point it isn’t covering your body, you’ll always have to remain vigilant about it.” 

“So I’m going to have this for the rest of my life?” 

“Yes.” 

“Fuck.” 

“What are we saying ‘fuck’ about?” Dream asked with a soft smile as he came back into the room. 

“I have to live with this forever.” Nightmare grumbled. Dream gently place a hand on his shoulder. 

“Well, you have to live with me forever too, so I’ll be there with you the whole way.” 

“...Thanks, Dream.” Nightmare gave him the tiniest of smiles. 

“I’ll be counting on it.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


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